Sunday was glorious weather
requiring a light jacket as the cool breezes gently blew throughout the day. It
was a stark contrast to the smothering humid heat and screaming wind before the
violent storm on Saturday evening. The rolling thunder, flashes of lighting and
horizontal rain was remarkable in its terrifying velocity. Sunday reminded us
there is calm following a storm… and Autumn arrived.
At last the trees are
beginning their foliage show and it is promising to be a lovely one that we may
enjoy until our first deep freeze. Although the following explanation will be a
vast over simplification, it may provide insight into the foliage change.
During the spring and summer the trees use their leaves to collect air and
water to turn it into food. The process, called photosynthesis means ‘putting
together with light’ so as the days shorten and daylight diminishes, the
gathering process ends. The leaf is no longer necessary to the tree and begins
its transformation providing breathtaking color for a brief moment in time.
The chemicals chlorophyll and
carotenoids are present in the leaf cells throughout the growing season with
chlorophyll making leaves the bright green color. As daylight decreases in
autumn, chlorophyll production stops and the chlorophyll disappears. With the
loss of chlorophyll the carotids, which have been there all along, become
visible and display lovely yellow leaf color. Lastly the anthocyanins arrive
and take center stage, ushering in the vibrant reds we associate with Autumn.
Anthocyanins, which are
glucose (sugar), are singularly responsible for the brilliant hues of purple,
crimson, and scarlet. They are a fickle lot, insisting on warm sunny days and
crisp evenings to slow the closing of the leaf veins and trap excess sugar
produced at this time… if the weather does not comply to their demand,
lackluster reds are produced. Following this last exercise,
the trees will toss their leaves so they may begin their final challenge.
Since shade and the foliage
show are not all the leaves have to offer, their parting gift is perhaps the
most important. As the leaves drift from the trees and collect below they
continue to work by slowly decomposing. Over time this process adds nutrients
to create a dark rich soil which nourishes the baby saplings as they grow to
become forest giants like their parents. New research has proven that trees
will provide a network of mutual care through intertwining roots and the adults
will actually send nutrients to ill or immature trees to assure they live and thrive.
The miracle of nature is always at work
regardless of the season.
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