Initiating Fall Leaf Color
University Outreach Publication
Spring flower colors are raised in fall to crown the trees. The pigments are the same but the colored containers have changed from dainty petals to coarse, broad leaves. Fall tree colors are composed of pigments that can be divided into oil paints, watercolors, and earth tones.
The grand show of fall trees represent a living color pallet. It is living leaves that reveal in their decline and fall last summer’s results and next spring’s promise shown in various colors. The living process in a tree that generates autumn colors is called senescence. Senescence is the pre-planned and orderly dismantling of light gathering structures and machinery inside the leaf. Part of senescence is the development of a structurally weak zone at the base of the leaf stock or petiole.
(FOR97-28) September 1997
Kim D. Coder
2004
University of Georgia School of Forest Resources
Athens, GA
2
Abiotic Factors, Aesthetics, Children and Youth, Landscape Design, Photosynthesis, Plant Health Care, Recreation, Social and Cultural Impacts
Eastern US
Color, Leaf characteristics, Leaf senescence, Autumn color