Follow the changing leaves with MDC’s fall color report

by Jill Pritchard, Missouri Department of Conservation 


JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – After a hot summer, most are welcoming the fall season with open arms. The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) encourages everyone to enjoy fall foliage through camping, hiking, driving tours, or even floating. To help, MDC offers weekly online fall color updates from agency foresters all over the state at mdc.mo.gov/fallcolor.

“Our weekly fall color updates are a great resource for the public,” said MDC Forestry Field Programs Supervisor Russell Hinnah. “Foresters begin posting reports in mid-September that show users where trees are beginning to turn and even suggest great places to see changing leaves.”

Hinnah said the dry summer conditions will likely cause fall color to start sooner than normal.

“Due to recent dry weather across central and southern Missouri, we’re already starting to see trees change and some may even lose leaves early,” he explained.

The chilly evenings we see in the fall season are critical for leaves to change color.

“Sugars produced by photosynthesis are trapped inside leaves by the cool autumn nights,” Hinnah explained. “Those sugars are the building blocks for the rich red, yellow, orange, and purple pigments. Chilly nights
cause the breakdown of green pigments, allowing the fall colors to show through.”

Missouri trees first begin changing color in the northern part of the state, then move southward. Sassafras, sumac, and Virginia creeper are some of the earliest to change in mid-September. In late September, black gum, bittersweet, and dogwood are turning. The peak of fall color usually hits around mid-October.

“Trees like maple, ash, oak, and hickory are at the peak of their fall display by the middle of October,” Hinnah noted. “Normally by the end of the month, colors are fading and leaves are falling.”

Missouri’s fall color can be enjoyed from almost anywhere. For spectacular vistas, choose routes along rivers with views of forested bluffs, and along ridges with sweeping scenes of forested landscapes.

“MDC conservation areas or Missouri state parks are wonderful places to take in the fall color,” suggested Hinnah.

And fall color isn’t just limited to trees. Prairies and roadsides display beautiful shades of gold, purple, olive, and auburn with autumn wildflowers, shrubs, and grasses. In cities and towns, enjoy places with mature trees such as older neighborhoods, parks, and even cemeteries.

​MDC provides its annual fall color update at mdc.mo.gov/fallcolor. The weekly reports include what species of trees are turning and suggestions on best places to see them. The updates run September through November.

Photo credit: MDC