Color is Coming

Fall colors are migrating across the state. The great weather this week has helped to bring out the oranges and reds as the sun blazes the glory of nature's palate.

The Iowa map is from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The Forestry Department wants us to know the red zone indicates the colors start to change the first couple weeks of October. The orange color shows the central portion of the stat sees the change in color during the 2nd and 3rd weeks of this month. The yellow zone is where the fall foliage takes the new hue during the last week of October to the first week of November.
http://www.iowadnr.gov/forestry/files/fall_color.pdf

Many variables come into play with our trees switching to winter mode. It is interesting how much the summer rainfall and drier fall will help to promote brighter colors. You can learn more by going to NOAA's fall color page.

http://www.noaa.gov/features/02_monitoring/foliage.html

Thanks to NOAA for the leaf picture on the top of the page.