Fall color is coming
The numerous animal species at Jennings Environmental Education Center live among plant species that are just as numerous, and now is just past their peak bloom time for the year.
About 600 plant species grow at the center, and in the fall when the leaves change, many people visit the prairie to see the colors they display.
“Now is past peak bloom, but there is still an abundance of color,” said Dillon Penrod, environmental interpretive technician at the center. "We have a whole host of different trees that are going to be changing.“
The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources will start posting a weekly map of leaf conditions today, Thursday, Sept. 28, which will show the progress of changing leaf color throughout the state.
Cecile Stelter, district forester at Cornplanter State Forest, explained that the leaves change color because plants lose chlorophyll when exposed to periods of cool and cold air.
“All the colors are always there, but chlorophyll is the highest amount in leaves and it masks the other colors,” Stelter said. “As the day gets shorter and the temperature changes, all those mechanisms in the trees stop producing as much chlorophyll and that's when we see a lot of color.
“It's really the best set up for fall foliage is shorter days and then warm sunny days with cooler nights.”
She also said Pennsylvania has a wide variety of plant species, and many of them change at different times into differing colors.
“You may have something that turns red, but it may not be the same color as something like red maple,” Stelter said. “We have a lot of color variation in our foliage. I think that's what makes Pennsylvania and the ability to look at leaves so beautiful is because we have that variety.”
The leaves typically begin changing color in September, and they can remain on trees until November or later. According to Stelter, the fall foliage season lasts about six weeks in most parts of the state, which gives people a lot of time to enjoy the fall scenery.
“We do see a lot of people coming to PA or driving around PA to try and catch the best leaf-viewing opportunities,” Stelter said. “I definitely think Pennsylvania is one of the states to come to see fall foliage for some of the reasons. It's a big state, you can always catch a showing of fall colors and we have a lot of unique species.”
Penrod, too, said Jennings gets a lot of visitors in the fall, and the center hosts some events focused on the fall scenery and plant education.
“We have some school groups coming in,” Penrod said. “We have some increased visitation and participation.”
Stelter’s favorite plant to seek out in the fall is the black tupelo, also known as the black gum tree, which is not a commonly known species, but one that turns a distinct color.
“It's a tree we find in a forest and it turns a brilliant scarlet color, and that's one of the ones I always look forward to seeing it in the fall,” Stelter said.
