Fall Colors... Appearing Already?

The picture at right was taken today in Oregon, IL. You can clearly see some orange appearing on this tree, and it's only August 24th! You may wonder why this tree is changing so early, and it's probably because it is under stress. Perhaps it has a disease of some sort, or it could be that it is in a location where it doesn't get as much water as other trees do. Or, it could simply be because this tree is more sensitive to the shorter days that we are now experiencing. (We've already lost about 1 hour 45 minutes of daylight since the summer solstice in June.)

Vegetation in the mid-latitudes change their color in the Fall due to cooler temperatures and less daylight. Across the Stateline area, peak color usually doesn't occur until mid-October. Although, some trees obviously start a little bit early!