- Collection:
- Georgia Government Publications
- Title:
- Why do leaves change color in the fall? [1999]
- Creator:
- Georgia. Forestry Commission
- Contributor to Resource:
- Georgia. Forestry Commission
- Publisher:
- Macon, Ga. : Georgia. Forestry Commission
- Date of Original:
- 1999
- Subject:
- Georgia
- Location:
- United States, Georgia, 32.75042, -83.50018
- Medium:
- publications (documents)
- Type:
- Text
- Format:
- application/pdf
- External Identifiers:
- Call Number GA F600 .M1 1999 L4
- Metadata URL:
- https://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/id:dlg_ggpd_s-ga-bf600-b-pm1-b1999-bl4-belec-p-btext
- Digital Object URL:
- https://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/do:dlg_ggpd_s-ga-bf600-b-pm1-b1999-bl4-belec-p-btext
- Language:
- eng
- Holding Institution:
- University of Georgia. Map and Government Information Library
- Rights:
-
Why Do Leaves Change Color in the Fall?
The GREEN color in leaves is from chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is needed for photosynthesis (this is when plants take water and carbon dioxide, and use sunlight to turn them into glucose, which is food for the tree).
In the fall, the days get shorter and dryer and there is not enough light or water for photosynthesis to occur. The chlorophyll eventually disappears, revealing the YELLOW and ORANGE of autumn leaves which have been there all along.
In some trees, like maples, the leaves turn bright RED and PURPLE . These colors are made when glucose is trapped in the leaves while photosynthesis shuts down in the fall. Warm days and cold nights cause brighter reds and purples.
It is the combination of these and other processes that make the WIDE RANGE OF COLORS we enjoy in the fall.
Color this YELLOW
Color this RED
Yellow Poplar Leaf
Red Oak Leaf
Color this PURPLE
Sweetgum Leaf
Color this ORANGE
Sugar Maple Leaf
Color these leaves the different fall colors