The change from green leaves to shades of orange, yellow and brown are about to take over in the Tri-State. Peak fall color is only weeks away.
But many of you had a great question: After exceptional drought and then torrential rain from Helene, what does this mean for our fall color in 2024?
If you look at the key ingredients for prime fall color, you need the following elements:
- Ample moisture at the end of summer, early fall
- Warm days
- Crisp, cool nights
We went to the experts on the Botanical Garden side of the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens to hear their perspectives on what might happen over the next three weeks.
"I think the hillsides may be a little dull, especially in some of the drier areas, but in neighborhoods you are going to find some fantastic fall colors on specific trees and that's something to really look forward to," said Scott Foltz, the director of horticulture.
I asked Scott about the impact of drought in September and the trees already showing signs of stress and dropping leaves. He said those trees aren't going to be our contenders for good color.
But trees that held their leaves and stayed green are in very good shape to provide us with vibrant color. Specifically, Helene gave the trees a healthy dose of rain.
"The perfect recipe is rain, which we've had, and then it needs to slow down. Then we get these bright, sunny days and cool nights and if we get that, the trees are going to look great," said Foltz.
And the forecast of sunshine with cool nights since then has also provided ideal conditions for leaves to hit their prime shades.
Only time will tell now!
"I would say the end of October, October 25 to 31, should be when I call it peak color here in the Cincinnati area," said Foltz.
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