I have never heard this one before. My son came home from school and said that he learned that Northeastern and Midwestern United States is the only place in the WORLD!!!! that leaves change color. Did he get this right? It's hard to believe when you consider that there are many other countries that experience the change of season.
Well, I live in the Pacific Northwest, and the leaves change color here every year. I'd have to think that leaves in other parts of the world change colors too. I can't believe it only happens in the U.S.
Posts: 3476 | Location: Colfax, WA--the home of the world's largest chain-saw sculpture!! | Registered: 06-03-02
No, the US isn't that special. Or did you think the trees know which country they're in ? It's a natural thing that happens to all trees under certain climatic conditions (except for coniferes, of course). If the leaves would fall off while being green the trees would die. All of the nutriens and water in the leaves go into the trunk as a reserve for winter. At the same time the chlorophyll (which makes the leaves green) degenerates, which is why the colors of the leaves change. It happens all over the world where there's a winter season that forces the plants to slow down their metabolism to a minimum.
I once got lost in a forest in Italy one October. There were plenty of trees with red, yellow, and orange leaves. No squirrels though....I've since wondered if Italy has squirrels but never found an answer.
Oh...and the southeastern states in America also have leaves that change color. Georgia is famous for her fall beauty.
Posts: 1015 | Location: Atlanta, GA USA | Registered: 06-04-02
Actually the color change takes place world wide for particular species.
But the weather patterns back east - Crisp cool nights and bright sunny days of Autumn cause the color change to be much more dramatic than else where in the world.
Two falls ago I noted that our trees changed with some spectacular displays of color - unusual for Central California. The Weather reported explained how the weather affects the color change.
The color change is not a product of weather. It is the shorter days and longer nights that cause the color-change to begin with. Weather only affects how bright and dramatic that color will be.
David
Posts: 3923 | Location: Leaving land, heading for the ocean | Registered: 06-03-02
? It's a natural thing that happens to all trees under certain climatic conditions (except for coniferes, of course). If the leaves would fall off while being green the trees would die. All of the nutriens and water in the leaves go into the trunk as a reserve for winter. At the same time the chlorophyll (which makes the leaves green) degenerates, which is why the colors of the leaves change. It happens all over the world where there's a winter season that forces the plants to slow down their metabolism to a minimum.
