Fall foliage: the science behind fall's changing leaf colours As
adapted from Pure Green Magazine As winter looms on the horizon
yet again, some may dream of whiling the days away in a lush,
green, tropical paradise. But don't pack your bags just yet, for
every fall, those who are lucky enough to live in temperate
climates witness an amazing transformation of the forest into a
vivid palette of magnificent reds, oranges, yellows, and golds.
While many Canadians may take fall colours for granted, only 14
percent of the world’s forests put on a fall colour display.
Forests famous for their colours are found in many places in
Canada—Southern Ontario and Quebec, Alberta, Nova Scotia, and
New Brunswick—as well as abroad in the Northeastern United
States, Japan, and Korea. Changes in Leaf Colour Throughout most
of the year, the leaves of deciduous tree species appear to us
as green. This is because the energy-capturing pigment at the
center of the photosynthetic machinery in leaves— chlorophyll—is
dominant in the le