ODNR Forester Explains Fall Foliage

ZANESVILLE, Ohio – Fall marks a special time of year for many Ohioans because of the variety of colors displayed by their diverse species of trees. 

Ohio Department of Natural Resources Fall Color Forester David Parrot explained why leaves change colors and what affects their vibrancy.

“It’s part of the trees going into dormancy,” Parrot said. “So as the trees start to go into dormancy, they stop that chlorophyll production and that starts allowing these other, yellows and oranges to be seen. As far as the reds and purples, once we start getting into sunny days and cool evenings, it triggers a chemical response in the leaves where there’s another chemical called anthocyanins that actually give us the reds and the purples.”

The leaves changing color and falling are a natural phenomenon that is affected by many environmental factors such as the amount of daylight, temperatures and moisture content. 

“So this year what we’re dealing with is primarily dry weather that we’ve been having. So with that we’ve been seeing a lot of trees in certain areas turning a lot earlier than they normally would in the areas that are more dry, and then in other areas that were dry but not as dry, we actually see some of those changes being delayed. So there’s a lot of different factors that tie in. and geographically, depending on where you are in the state has a big impact,” Parrot said.

This year’s foliage will be more sporadic due to the variance in rainfall across the state. However you can immerse yourself in fall’s colorful experience by hiking the trails at any of Ohio’s state parks or forests. 

For a better idea of where to experience this year’s peak colors, you can find a foliage map here.