Red, orange, yellow, ocher … and even blue and purple. The chromatic variety of the nature in autumn provides us with unique images, with a diversity of colors and tones that seem to integrate you into a retouched painting or photograph.
The trees in autumn They have a whole color palette in their leaves, previously green. But… Why do they change color?
The variety of colors of trees in autumn is related to the time of solar radiation. Sunlight is necessary for them to be planted to produce chlorophyll (which gives them their characteristic green color). Chlorophyll, in turn, is essential for photosynthesis, that is, the process by which the chlorophyll in the leaves transforms water and carbon dioxide into food.
During winter, there is not enough sunlight for the tree to maintain its process of photosynthesis full, so the tree goes dormant and waits for spring to come again.
The production of chlorophyll decreases or stops and that is when other pigments of the leaves begin to emerge that already existed before, but were hidden by an abundant green chlorophyll.
Emerge the carotenoidswhich are necessary to transfer the energy of sunlight, and give the leaves a yellow, ocher, and orange color. Besides, the anthocyaninwhich is not present in all species, protects trees from ultraviolet radiation and generates red, blue and purple tones.
The colors of this season are more intense when the autumn days are sunny and the nights are cold but the temperature does not drop below zero degrees. If this does not happen, the leaves die, turn brown and fall to the ground, where the decomposition process gives them new ranges of color.
More information – Trees for fall
