The prediction of a beautiful fall color display is forecasted during the month of October here in New Jersey contributed to the significant August rains we've had. There are two factors that contribute to fall color on trees, temperature and moisture. A warm wet spring, favorable summer weather, and warm sunny fall days with cool nights produce the most brilliant autumn colors.
However, with all the rain comes other fall changes that can effect deciduous trees, especially newly planted ones. If you've planted a new deciduous tree this spring through summer, you may be noticing one of the following occurrences:
The foliage on your newly planted trees may be yellowing and spotting, and looking a bit stressed right now. Again, this is a result of the extreme amount of rain and moisture we've had. Not to worry though, the beauty of a deciduous tree is that it loses its leaves and next year, the tree will produce all brand new leaves again!
In some cases, newly planted deciduous trees may have even started to defoliate earlier than you may have expected. Why? The cooler nights and the onset of fall is one of the reasons, but again, the extreme amount of rain we had this spring and summer has a large influence on leaf drop this year as the tree is concentrating on setting a good root system for the following years. So, it sacrifices the leaves and refocuses its energy below the soil.
If you have a newly planted deciduous tree where you're noticing any of these occurrences, you can easily test the trees health if you're skeptical. An easy test is to take a pruner, your fingernail or a knife and gently scratch down the bark on a limb. A healthy tree will show a green color under the top layer of bark. Occasionally, you will come across a branch that may have die back on it and will not have green showing, that branch can be pruned off in most cases. Thus, performing the 'scratch' test in several places is a good idea.
How about "Lichen"? During a long rainy season, lichen is prominent on trees, especially on established trees. Lichen is a combination of green algae and fungal tissue. Is it harmful to your trees? Most often not. Lichens grow on the surface of the tree and do not harm the tissue of the tree nor do they cause plant diseases. In fact, some believe that it makes a tree more picturesque.
What about deciduous shrubs? Many deciduous shrubs will begin to lose their leaves early this fall as well, including more established shrubs due to the excessive amount of rain and their root systems being smaller in some cases. However, if you have a healthy specimen of a shrub that you count on for beautiful fall color, you may start to see them turning their fall colors earlier than usual.
You can look at Autumn as a second Spring, where each beautiful fall leaf is like a flower..
