The Colors Of Fall

By Jeff Berti
How colorful will Missouri’s fall foliage be this year? The answer, according to foresters with the Missouri Department of Conservation is, “It depends.”
First, it depends on where you live. If you live in northwestern Missouri, chances are you will get to see a nice display of autumn reds and golds, maybe even an excellent one.
Prospects for fall color are good to excellent in the Green Hills area due to adequate soil moisture and a good growing season. An early freeze could ruin things, but otherwise the peak of color should occur around the third week of October, with color already starting and continuing through the end of October.
Woodlands along the Thompson, Weldon and Grand rivers are among the best spots for viewing fall color in the area. A wide variety of trees and shrubs set those areas aglow with golden yellows, deep oranges and rich reds and purples. Crowder State Park should also be ablaze with color this year due the high numbers of oaks and hard maples.
The quality of this year’s fall colors also depends on weather in the coming weeks. The ideal weather for bright fall colors is warm, sunny days with cool – but not freezing – nighttime temperatures. The warm sunlight promotes formation of sugars and pigments, while cool nights stop production of chlorophyll, which gives leaves their green color. With green eliminated, red, yellow and orange pigments become dominant. Cool nights also prevent sugars from moving into the roots at the end of the growing season. The trapped sugars turn leaves red or purple. So the cool weather during September should improve prospects for fall color.
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When should you take a drive to enjoy Missouri’s season of splendor? Why not join the fall driving tour at the Poosey Conservation Area in northern Livingston County on Sunday, Oct. 18. The tour will run from noon to 4 p.m. This year’s tour date may not be close to the peak of fall color for the many species of trees that are native to the area. I have worked at the tour for several years now, and I have talked to several people that think that Poosey is just as pretty in the fall as anywhere in the United States. Many of the people that come to the area have been coming since the fall driving tour began. They just can’t get enough of the North Missouri beauty.
This will be the 29th year for the annual driving tour at the 5,900-acre area in northern Livingston County. The area can be reached from Route U or Route A, about 13 miles northwest of Chillicothe or 12 miles southwest of Trenton.
MDC staff members will be present to answer questions and talk about natural resource management practices including prairie grass ecology, noxious weed eradication, fisheries and wildlife habitat management.
Gates will open for the self-guided driving tour of the area at noon and the last cars will be allowed to begin the tour at 4 p.m. The tour will begin at Pike’s Lake on the northeast side of the area. Visitors will drive through Poosey historic sites such as the “Panther’s Den.” Roads will be graded but high-clearance vehicles are recommended. The tour will take about one hour to complete without stops, but it’s recommended that visitors allow more time for stops, exploration and discussion.
The tour is a chance to enjoy vibrant fall foliage on an area that has more than 3,000 acres of woodlands. Poosey also has 235 acres with native prairie grasses, which also turn to colorful reds and golds in autumn.