As mid October approaches, and last year peak in the Boston Mountains was slightly earlier than the normal and very colorful too (in a drought year); I am looking to the last week of October, again, and maybe as late as November 3-4 in the more sheltered areas; coves, gulfs, and hidden valleys, and sheltered creek valleys.
from 2cooly’s fabulous web-site on fall foliage
2012 Color Potential
We have been watching individual and groups of drought-stricken trees which had suffered obvious drought stress. Leaves were pale green, or even yellowish. Some trees had brown, dried-up leaves, which shows those trees had gone dormant. However, after the rains MANY OF THESE TREES RECOVERED!
Those trees with the pale green or yellow leaves turned normal green again. Ever have a house plant that wilted because you forgot to water it? When you watered it the plant returned to normal within a few hours. Same for trees in a forest.
Moreover, the acorn crop is heavy this year. Acorns and other nuts are everywhere. Forest animals will eat well this fall! Stressed trees do NOT produce heavy acorn amounts.
There WILL be good fall color this year – provided we get the right temperature and sunlight conditions. Cool nights in the low 40’s and upper 30’s, with sunny days in the mid 50’s or low 60’s is what we need. As long as leaves are green there will be color – IF we get the right temperature and sunlight conditions.
Watch For False Starts
Fall 2012 will be our 15th consecutive year of reporting on area fall foliage. From that experience we can say that in mid-October there will usually be a cold spell. Foliage will begin to turn very nicely, then all of a sudden here comes a warm front with cloudy days. That stalls the color turn. Where color ends up depends on how long that warm front hangs around. This happens almost every year, but not all years. We get the best fall color when the weather turns cold, and stays cold, for two weeks. This happens about once every 5 to 8 years. This is why we believe it is a fool’s game to try to predict color intensity more than a week in advance!
Long Term Trip Planning For Peak
While we don’t predict color intensity more than a week in advance, we can say for sure that, barring some real freak of nature, whatever the color level is to be, it will happen in the last week of October into the first few days of November. This has been true for all 14 years we have reported. All of the photos on our site where taken in that time frame.
However, keep in mind that from mid October on there will be color. Foliage in the Ozarks starts at low elevations and moves “uphill” over a three week period. So if you can’t make it during the last week of October for peak, that does not mean you can’t see color at all. You will. You’ll see grand color on individual trees, or small stands of trees. In fact this color tends to be more intense in places than the peak. What we call “Peak” is simply the most color on the most trees at the same time. But if you want that intense color that really “WOWS!” you ( and that is what we personally like the most), you can experience that any time from mid October through the peak.
HOWEVER! As long as the leaves are still GREEN there can be plenty of color IF the fall temperature and light conditions are right.
Remember: Year 2011 was also a drought year. Yet we saw some the best color here in many years in fall of 2011.
for more go here:
http://www.ozarkmtns.com/foliage/reports.asp
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Life and Wildlife along the Little Buffalo River 