Fall Foliage 2018

[Sugarloaf1989]

With today marking the start of Meteorological Fall, I thought I would start a fall foliage thread. Not much color change here in Enfield, a few scattered tree's are turning in the village green. Hopefully this season is better than last year which was the worst since 2011. I'm contemplating heading up to the NEK in Late September if the weather and foliage cooperate.

[alex]

Doesn't really qualify for foliage yet, but certainly lots of change in our area. Won't be long...

[mreaves]

Went up to Morrisville, VT for a 5K this morning. Driving through Worcester and Elmore you are starting to see color changes on a larger scale than the occasional rougue tree. Still subtle and early but it is starting. 

[wxmanmitch]

It's starting! Here's a drone shot from today showing the scattered color in the forest canopy. I'd guess we'll peak in about 3 weeks based on the color now. 

 

[Baroclinic Zone]

Seeing some early color in the Norway Maples as I drive my daughter to school.

[Typhoon Tip]

I'm interested in this Maple "blight" that permeated the region down my way last year... 

Does that repeat?

Seems the weather is ideal for - though I don't know if that is causal.  But this tepidly elevated DP and water world seems conducive, intuitively - 

I have a 250 year-old Maple immediately abutting the property line, whom I lovingly refer to as General Sherman. This sucker is ginormous!  Canopy is probably some 100 foot in diameter, and it's the the better part of 70 foot at the crown.  The first six years I lived at that address, that thing burned in a saffron hue so brilliant under Canadian blue sky days that it was hard to peer at it without sunglasses.. I mean, that's not figurative hyperbole, simply too much luster.  I nerdly experimented by toting a book out under it one evening near sunset and could read by it comfortably. 

Yet...last year failed.  Toward the end of September, the leaves started to curl as the green grew pallid instead of early fringe yellow that typically happens the 10 days before the flash.  Embedded on the leaves were these brown-block smudges...  dappled like an infestation - I think someone mentioned there was some sort of thing going on but don't quote me.  

I wonder if we can add that polish to the ever growing, "crossed over the climate threshold of doom" list of evidences we are for some bizarre reason seemingly congenitally driven to deny -  

[tamarack]

1 hour ago, Typhoon Tip said:

I'm interested in this Maple "blight" that permeated the region down my way last year... 

Does that repeat?

Seems the weather is ideal for - though I don't know if that is causal.  But this tepidly elevated DP and water world seems conducive, intuitively - 

I have a 250 year-old Maple immediately abutting the property line, whom I lovingly refer to as General Sherman. This sucker is ginormous!  Canopy is probably some 100 foot in diameter, and it's the the better part of 70 foot at the crown.  The first six years I lived at that address, that thing burned in a saffron hue so brilliant under Canadian blue sky days that it was hard to peer at it without sunglasses.. I mean, that's not figurative hyperbole, simply too much luster.  I nerdly experimented by toting a book out under it one evening near sunset and could read by it comfortably. 

Yet...last year failed.  Toward the end of September, the leaves started to curl as the green grew pallid instead of early fringe yellow that typically happens the 10 days before the flash.  Embedded on the leaves were these brown-block smudges...  dappled like an infestation - I think someone mentioned there was some sort of thing going on but don't quote me.  

I wonder if we can add that polish to the ever growing, "crossed over the climate threshold of doom" list of evidences we are for some bizarre reason seemingly congenitally driven to deny -  

Sounds like tar spot fungus.  It's been common in southern Maine in wet/high humidity wx.  Doesn't seem to hurt the tree much as it generally starts after most of the food production is the can, but it looks awful.

Seeing some early color in the Norway Maples as I drive my daughter to school.

Norway maple has fall color?  Those I've seen produce mediocre shades at best.

About 15% change along the side of Mile Hill, elev. 750-800.  At my place, 380 or so, even the ash hasn't done much yet.

[Baroclinic Zone]

1 hour ago, tamarack said:

Sounds like tar spot fungus.  It's been common in southern Maine in wet/high humidity wx.  Doesn't seem to hurt the tree much as it generally starts after most of the food production is the can, but it looks awful.

Seeing some early color in the Norway Maples as I drive my daughter to school.

Norway maple has fall color?  Those I've seen produce mediocre shades at best.

About 15% change along the side of Mile Hill, elev. 750-800.  At my place, 380 or so, even the ash hasn't done much yet.

What other Maples are there that grow like >100' tall and have trunk diameters about the size of a school bus?  These trees are enormous.

[tamarack]

12 minutes ago, Baroclinic Zone said:

What other Maples are there that grow like >100' tall and have trunk diameters about the size of a school bus?  These trees are enormous.

Might be silver maple - shaggy light gray bark, leaves are deeply notched, moreso than red, sugar, Norway maples.  Fall color is a weak yellow-green.  Many silver maples have major forks at 10,20,30' above ground.  In nature they do well in moist areas, especially along/near watercourses, but they're also frequently planted along streets - fast growing, resistant (for a maple) to salt/gunk, but vulnerable to ice/snow due to weak and somewhat brittle wood.   Biggest tree in Maine (not yet officially measured) - assuming it's not been broken apart since last measured in 1996 - is a silver maple on the floodplain along the East Branch of the Penobscot.  It was 98" in diameter at that 1996 taping, and when I saw it in 1990 it was 96" diameter, about 100' tall and 100' crown width.

[dendrite]

21 hours ago, Baroclinic Zone said:

What other Maples are there that grow like >100' tall and have trunk diameters about the size of a school bus?  These trees are enormous.

https://extension.unh.edu/fwt/bigtrees/admin/reports/report_docs/bigtree_rep_champ.cfm

[#NoPoles]

The norway maples and the japanese maples are changing fast...along with the shrubs referred to as burning bush. Norway Maples are crap trees and are considered an invasive species. Silver Maples and Norway Maples can get huge. Norway Maples usually get tar spot fungus, silver maples usually turn yellow, maybe with a hint of organge. Most silver maples have a double trunk. Sugar maples can also get huge, and they have the bright firey orangey/yellow foliage in autumn. Red maples can get large but usually dont stay healthy long enough to get super huge. But red maples also have amazing foliage.

[tamarack]

23 hours ago, dendrite said:

https://extension.unh.edu/fwt/bigtrees/admin/reports/report_docs/bigtree_rep_champ.cfm

Thanks.  Distilling some data, here are the 10 highest scoring trees (points based on inches of circumference, feet of height, and 1/4 of crown spread in feet):

406  Northern Red Oak
402  Silver maple (biggest circumference by 25", comes to 92" diameter)
401  Eastern Cottonwood  (Midwest species, not native to NH)
392  Silver maple
388  Silver maple
373  Silver maple
363  Silver maple
357  Northern red oak
356  Sugar maple
350  Northern red oak

[alex]

Took the drone up a couple of days ago. Things are definitely changing pretty quickly. 

 

PS: house on the bottom right is for sale if anybody is interested

[Lava Rock]

Be up at Crawford notch next weekend. Meanwhile hardly any change here

Took the drone up a couple of days ago. Things are definitely changing pretty quickly. 
 
PS: house on the bottom right is for sale if anybody is interested

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

[Hoth]

Actually getting some decent yellow and orange in the crowns of a few maples in the yard. My birch is already dropping its leaves. Gutters ftl. 

[tamarack]

Yesterday's wind brought down a fair amount of leaves, mainly white ash which is the first entry into stick season.  Perhaps 20% color here, average hues, but today and tomorrow mornings will give colors a boost.

[alex]

[dendrite]

A little color here too...mostly the normal early spots and relatively higher elevations. I'm surprised you have deciduous trees up there with the year round freezes.

[alex]

2 hours ago, dendrite said:

A little color here too...mostly the normal early spots and relatively higher elevations. I'm surprised you have deciduous trees up there with the year round freezes.

LOL. It's not the arctic! I don't think we have anything beyond frost in July/August. So the trees just gotta hurry up lol

[LongBeachSurfFreak]

On 9/12/2018 at 3:20 PM, tamarack said:

Might be silver maple - shaggy light gray bark, leaves are deeply notched, moreso than red, sugar, Norway maples.  Fall color is a weak yellow-green.  Many silver maples have major forks at 10,20,30' above ground.  In nature they do well in moist areas, especially along/near watercourses, but they're also frequently planted along streets - fast growing, resistant (for a maple) to salt/gunk, but vulnerable to ice/snow due to weak and somewhat brittle wood.   Biggest tree in Maine (not yet officially measured) - assuming it's not been broken apart since last measured in 1996 - is a silver maple on the floodplain along the East Branch of the Penobscot.  It was 98" in diameter at that 1996 taping, and when I saw it in 1990 it was 96" diameter, about 100' tall and 100' crown width.

Wow, sad I just saw this!! I have an enormous silver maple in my back yard. It’s currently 14’ in circumference. It’s survived major nor’easters and several hurricanes here on the south shore of Long Island. The key to its survival (it was lifting up sections of my lawn during sandy) is cabling and pruning. Every 5 years or so it’s climbed and pruned. As big as my tree is, by far the biggest tree I have found on the south shore is a cottonwood. Its easily over 100’ tall and 25’ in diameter. I have to get over and officially measure it. Here’s a pic of my silver maple 

   

[tamarack]

10 hours ago, LongBeachSurfFreak said:

Wow, sad I just saw this!! I have an enormous silver maple in my back yard. It’s currently 14’ in circumference. It’s survived major nor’easters and several hurricanes here on the south shore of Long Island. The key to its survival (it was lifting up sections of my lawn during sandy) is cabling and pruning. Every 5 years or so it’s climbed and pruned. As big as my tree is, by far the biggest tree I have found on the south shore is a cottonwood. Its easily over 100’ tall and 25’ in diameter. I have to get over and officially measure it. Here’s a pic of my silver maple 

Great-looking tree.  Reducing sail area (pruning) seems a sensible way to limit chances of windthrow, and silver maple is generally rather shallow rooted.  A former co-worker bought a northern Maine house with a similar diameter silver maple with even wider forks and closer to the ground.  Someone years earlier had inserted a 3/4" length of threaded steel rod through both major forks, with washers and nuts at each side to hold things together.  Switching to cottonwood, and assuming it's Eastern cottonwood rather than one of its western cousins, it's a tree that contends with tulip poplar (not closely related despite the name) and sycamore for being the country's tallest deciduous species.  Each of the three is known to have exceeded 150 feet.

Your LI location should mitigate against severe ice storms, though wet snow could be an issue.

[Sugarloaf1989]

11 hours ago, LongBeachSurfFreak said:

Wow, sad I just saw this!! I have an enormous silver maple in my back yard. It’s currently 14’ in circumference. It’s survived major nor’easters and several hurricanes here on the south shore of Long Island. The key to its survival (it was lifting up sections of my lawn during sandy) is cabling and pruning. Every 5 years or so it’s climbed and pruned. As big as my tree is, by far the biggest tree I have found on the south shore is a cottonwood. Its easily over 100’ tall and 25’ in diameter. I have to get over and officially measure it. Here’s a pic of my silver maple 

   

I grew up with old growth forest up the block from where I lived in Queens. As odd as it sounds, Alley Pond Park has very old trees. The oldest tree in NYC, a Tulip Tree circa 1575, was walking distance from my house.

[LongBeachSurfFreak]

10 minutes ago, tamarack said:

Great-looking tree.  Reducing sail area (pruning) seems a sensible way to limit chances of windthrow, and silver maple is generally rather shallow rooted.  A former co-worker bought a northern Maine house with a similar diameter silver maple with even wider forks and closer to the ground.  Someone years earlier had inserted a 3/4" length of threaded steel rod through both major forks, with washers and nuts at each side to hold things together.  Switching to cottonwood, and assuming it's Eastern cottonwood rather than one of its western cousins, it's a tree that contends with tulip poplar (not closely related despite the name) and sycamore for being the country's tallest deciduous species.  Each of the three is known to have exceeded 150 feet.

Your LI location should mitigate against severe ice storms, though wet snow could be an issue.

I’ve storms are very rare on the south shore. The last time we had over .25” accretion was back in January 94. I did loose a 12” diameter branch during the middle nor’easter last March with 6” of wet snow. 

Tulip is generally the tallest and longest lived tree in this area. There is a grove of (I assume) old growth tulips in my town. 5 trees 100’+ tall and several feet in diameter. I assume they are old growth because they have very furrowed bark and large missing limbs that have completely grown over. As big and majestic as they are they have nothing on this one random cottonwood. I’ll have to take a pic to post here. It’s more then double the height of the surrounding forest and is visible for miles 

[LongBeachSurfFreak]

7 minutes ago, Sugarloaf1989 said:

I grew up with old growth forest up the block from where I lived in Queens. As odd as it sounds, Alley Pond Park has very old trees. The oldest tree in NYC, a Tulip Tree circa 1575, was walking distance from my house.

That’s the queens giant, and it’s the oldest and largest living tree in NYC. That tree is incredible and has a huge hollow in the middle you can go into. That whole grove is spectacular. There are several other massive tulips and one red oak that I would think is the biggest of its species in NYC. I didn’t know you grew up in the Bayside area. 

[Sugarloaf1989]

We visited Alley Pond Park in November of 2015. Here is my son in front of one of the massive Tulip Trees:

 

[tamarack]

4 hours ago, Sugarloaf1989 said:

We visited Alley Pond Park in November of 2015. Here is my son in front of one of the massive Tulip Trees:

 

Handsome pic.  The uncluttered bark of that tree suggests it's still adding diameter at a good rate, typical of tulip poplar.  Slower growing trees tend to accumulate lichens and lots more vines than I see here.  That species self-prunes as well as any I know of, so tulip poplars with 40-50 feet of clear bole are common in a forest setting, and when they're 2-3+ feet in diameter and less than 20 feet apart, they look like a wall of wood.

[Sugarloaf1989]

Starting to see some very early color change here in Enfield. A few of the Sugar Maples are changing:

 

[tamarack]

Near the hacienda the leaf drop isn't far behind color change, thanks to about 1/3 of the trees being early-naked ash.  That species' drop ranges 30-90%, avg 50, while all others are under 10% drop, perhaps 30% color.

[cny rider]

I'm getting pessimistic on fall foliage here in upstate NY.

So far we have had a lot of red and sugar maples just turn yellow/brown and lose their leaves rapidly.

Nothing else is really showing much color.  We usually reach peak at my place just after Columbus Day weekend and I don't see it happening this year.

 

[Sugarloaf1989]

On 9/25/2018 at 4:27 PM, tamarack said:

Handsome pic.  The uncluttered bark of that tree suggests it's still adding diameter at a good rate, typical of tulip poplar.  Slower growing trees tend to accumulate lichens and lots more vines than I see here.  That species self-prunes as well as any I know of, so tulip poplars with 40-50 feet of clear bole are common in a forest setting, and when they're 2-3+ feet in diameter and less than 20 feet apart, they look like a wall of wood.

The park has quite a bit of old growth Maple, Oak, Tulip Tree and Beech. A majority of the trees are 75 -100'. The lumber alone is worth a small fortune considering how rare this large quantity of old growth is.