The first day of fall isn't until Sept. 22, but some trees are already starting to show off their fall colors. A local arborist tells WVXU that's not fall coming early; it's stress.
"Right now in this part of Ohio and the region, it is a drought, and so what the trees are more than likely doing [is] shutting down to conserve water, and they basically go into almost a survival mode," explains Kalan Jones, an ISA certified arborist and owner of Red Arrow Services in Oxford, Ohio.
He says there could be some other factors at play, but stress from the drought is the biggest culprit.
The second half of the summer was particularly hot. Jones says the soaring temperatures coupled with a lack of rain means trees are thirsty and not getting the water they need to keep their photosynthesis going.
"If we do get some more rain, it could keep that tree from going into survival mode. Some trees might change earlier, and others might be more dependent on that photo [shortened daylight] period when they start changing color," says Jones.
The drought conditions and cooler night temperatures could mean a shortened leaf peeping season. He says the cold night air shortens the photosynthesis period — that's when trees start changing colors and dropping leaves based on the amount of sunlight.
"They might [start] turning colors or dropping leaves sooner because of these cooler temperatures that we've had. Compared to last year, I think at this time, it was 87 and it maybe got to 70 at night, or stayed warmer."
The effects of drought stress can extend beyond the fall.
"Sometimes that stress may not be seen until the following spring, or even a year after that, and there might be die back from branches that you thought were just maybe the leaves, but that tree ... might purposely start killing off its own branches to conserve energy."
What can you do?
Once the leaves start dropping, there's no going back. The little bit of rain the Tri-State has seen in the last few weeks isn't enough to stave off the color-changing process.
For your own trees, the best thing you can do is water them, according to Jones.
He also recommends a good ring of mulch around the tree's base.
"Mulch rings are awesome," he says. "Trees do not like turf grass so much; they're made for a forest setting. So mulching trees with wood chips or any kind of mulch is much better for the tree. Usually, the larger the mulch ring, the better."
He says the mulch should be about 3 to 4 inches deep, and you should be careful not to pile it up at the base of the tree.
"A lot of people refer to that as a mulch volcano. You don't want it up to the base. You want, actually, to pull it away from the base. You just want the mulch covering the roots, but not the root flare of the tree itself. You don't want the mulch up against the tree — that just invites moisture and fungus and other things that you don't want right up against your tree," he points out.
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