Peak Foliage Reaching Final Destinations in New York State!

Look for great fall colors this weekend.

Week of Nov. 2-Nov. 8, 2011

This is the ninth and final 2011 FALL COLOR REPORT for New York State. Reports are obtained from field observers and reflect expected color conditions for the coming weekend. FALL COLOR REPORTS are issued every Wednesday afternoon.

Peak foliage is reaching its final destinations in New York State, according to observers for Empire State Development’s I LOVE NEW YORK program. This weekend, look for peak colors in lower Rockland County, on Long Island and in New York City.

In Rockland County, foliage spotters in the New City area expect peak colors for the coming weekend. Look for nearly complete color transition and a bright mix of yellow, red and orange leaves.

On Long Island, peak foliage will cover most of Nassau and Suffolk counties. Color change is expected to be around 95 percent with ‪yellow, orange, red, purple and some brown leaves of average brilliance.

Foliage spotters in New York City are predicting peak foliage this weekend for most of the city. Colors are emerging fast and include an abundance of yellows, oranges, pinks and reds, along with some remaining green. Look for greater color transition in the parks, slightly less along streets.

The rest of the state are now past peak.


Look for Foliage Updates on Twitter and Facebook

You can also get early foliage updates, plus access to each Wednesday’s full foliage report, via I LOVE NEW YORK's Twitter and Facebook pages. Also, check the I LOVE NEW YORK Flickr page for photographs of this season’s gorgeous fall foliage. I LOVE NEW YORK recently became the first state tourist organization to break the 30,000 followers mark on Twitter.

Foliage Means Business for New York State

The spectacular colors of a New York State autumn mean more than just pretty scenery to those in the State’s travel and tourism industry. The fall foliage season means big business for New York; it’s one of the state’s most popular travel seasons. This so-called “shoulder season” has become a favorite time for weekend getaways and week-long vacations, as well as the traditional drive to the country to view nature’s colorful display.

New York State’s Advantage

Why do people from all over the world head to the spectacular New York State foliage display? Unlike the rest of the country, the northeast is particularly blessed with a great variety of broad-leaved trees, which help give the region’s foliage a spectacular color range. New York State has almost as many acres of such trees as the rest of the Northeast combined.

The change in color from the bright greens of summer to the brilliant hues of fall follows a predictable pattern across the state. It begins high in the Adirondack and Catskill mountains in late August and early September, and spreads out and down across the hills and valleys of the state, ending on Long Island and in New York City in late October to early November. It takes about two weeks for the colors to complete their cycles in any given area, with peak brilliance lasting three to four days in any one spot.

How Leaves Change Color

Seasonal conditions and the resultant chemical changes in the leaves are the key factors in the timing and coloration of the leaves. Generally, clear, sunny days and cool nights with temperatures in the 40’s bring about the most striking autumn colors.

Three chemicals within the leaves – chlorophyll, carotenoids and anthocyanins – are involved in the annual color change process. As temperatures cool and the days shorten, cells at the base of the leaves disintegrate, blocking passages from the leaves to the branches and causing chlorophyll to decompose.

Chlorophyll is what gives most plants their green color. As the chlorophyll fades, colors in the other pigments – the carotenoids and anthocyanins – come to the surface. Trees with leaves having a preponderance of carotenoids – like beech, birch and willow – turn varying shades of yellow. When anthocyanins predominate – as in the case of many maples, dogwoods and sumac – reds and purples appear.