The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is offering weekly fall color updates.
Two things must happen for leaves to turn colors, MDC Resource Forester Cory Gregg said.
"First, sugars produced by photosynthesis are trapped inside leaves by chilly - but not freezing - autumn nights," he said. "Those sugars are the building blocks for red, yellow, orange and purple pigments. Cool nights simultaneously cause the breakdown of green pigments, allowing these other colors to show through."
A wide variety of trees around the state means Missourians have a fall-color season that can last four to six weeks. Sassafras, sumac and Virginia creeper are some of the earliest foliage to change, beginning in mid-September. By late September, black gum, bittersweet and dogwoods are turning.
The color change starts earliest in northern Missouri and moves southward across the state. The peak of fall color in Missouri is usually around mid-October. This is when maples, ashes, oaks, and hickories are at the height of their fall display. Normally by late October, the colors are fading and the leaves start to drop from the trees.
"It's still early in the season, and we haven't seen much of a change," MDC Community Forester Mark Grueber said. "As we move more into fall, we hope for warm sunny days and cool nights to provide us with the best color display."
As far as where the best places in the state to to view the fall colors, Grueber recommends routes along rivers with views of forested bluffs and along ridges with sweeping scenes of forested landscapes. On a smaller scale, find fall color through drives on back roads, hikes or float trips under a colorful forest canopy. Conservation areas and state parks are also great places to visit for fall color.
"Even treeless areas, such as prairies and roadsides, display beautiful shades of gold, purple, olive and auburn with autumn wildflowers, shrubs and grasses," Grueber said. "In cities and towns, enjoy places with mature trees, such as older neighborhoods, parks and even cemeteries."
MDC offers weekly online fall color updates from department foresters all over the state. The updates include species of trees that are turning and recommendations for where to see them.
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