Ashburn, VA

68° F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Ashburn

Virginia

68°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Ashburn, VA Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Video

Podcasts

Winter Center

News & Features AccuWeather Prime Astronomy Business Climate Health Recreation Sports Travel
Special Weather Statement

News / Weather News

What’s behind the lack of color in autumn foliage across parts of Northeast?

By Amanda Schmidt, AccuWeather staff writer

Published Oct. 25, 2018 1:39 PM EDT | Updated Oct. 25, 2018 1:39 PM EDT

Copied

AccuWeather Photo GalleryFall foliage is dull but visible in central New Jersey
Vibrant autumn foliage in the eastern United States draws in leaf peepers from near and far.

The northernmost part of the Northeast, from the uppermost Great Lakes states to the Adirondacks to northern New England, has had fairly good fall color this year.

However, there is a lack of color in areas farther south such as southern New York, southern New England and the mid-Atlantic, according to Dr. Marc Abrams, professor of ecosystem science and management at Penn State University.
...
This region was affected by a very wet summer and fall, and it also experienced unseasonably high temperatures extending into mid-October, which contributed to the dull fall colors.

“It seems like it has disrupted the normal coloration process,” Abrams said. “Even though the temperatures are now conducive to fall colors, a lot of the trees are just not producing it.”

The warm and wet weather extended the growing season and kept the leaves in a green condition. As a result, the normal breakdown of the green pigment called chlorophyll is not happening this year.

The abundant rainfall caused leaf fungus in many trees, which also resulted in diminished colors.

RELATED: [Stunning autumn foliage starts to emerge in southeastern US despite Florence, Michael impacts, Longer summers and irregular weather could harm breathtaking autumn foliage, The most vivid and underappreciated US regions for fall foliage]

The region is starting to experience frost at night. When the frost hits the green leaves, the leaves will usually go straight from green to brown.

“It's almost like a perfect storm of conditions that led to pretty bad color this year,” Abrams said.

While there are still some trees that exhibit vibrant fall colors, many trees are still green or have dull colors.

“There are some trees coming out of this weekend with fairly decent colors, but they are definitely in the minority,” Abrams said on Tuesday, Oct. 23.
Stunning drone footage showcases incredible fall foliage
Certain species of tree are better at producing fall colors. Therefore, some species will still exhibit beautiful fall foliage.

For example, sugar maple and red maple normally produce the best color because they're fairly abundant trees.

“We have a lot of [sugar maple and red maple trees], and some of them are coming through now [in the Northeast], but many are not showing good color. I'm not saying it's impossible to find some good color out there, but it's not like a normal year,” Abrams said.

Abrams projects that there will be a delayed leaf fall, particularly in the oak species because they are still very much in a green condition. While oak tree leaves have typically fallen by the end of October, it will be well into November before most leaves are off the trees.

Quiz Maker - powered by Riddle

Report a Typo

Weather News

Winter Weather

May in the Mile High City: Heavy snowfall forecast for Denver area

May 19, 2022
Hurricane

Chances for a tropical system to form prior to June 1 now waning

May 19, 2022
Weather Forecasts

2 seasons in 2 days as cold air, snow return to central US

May 19, 2022
Climate

4 critical climate indicators raised red flags in 2021

May 19, 2022
Health

Saharan dust cloud over the Atlantic may reach Gulf Coast by weekend

May 19, 2022
Hurricane

Deadly subtropical storm slams southern Brazil, Uruguay

May 19, 2022
Weather Forecasts

AccuWeather's 2022 Europe summer forecast

May 17, 2022
Weather News

Heat wave linked to 3 deaths in Chicago

May 19, 2022
Weather News

Crews battle strong winds to rescue climbers trapped on Mt. Rainier

May 18, 2022
Severe Weather

Severe weather to rumble through storm-weary Midwest

May 19, 2022
Weather News

Deadly lightning-sparked oil fire caused chaos for 5 days

May 18, 2022
Astronomy

Reports of unidentified objects 'frequent, continuing,' officials find

May 18, 2022
video

Engineers develop enzyme that could provide a solution to the plastic ...

May 18, 2022
Health

Collars and chewables to keep your pup free of ticks and fleas

Apr. 28, 2022
Recreation

Try putting one of these on your porch or patio this year

May 12, 2022
Show More Show Less Chevron down

Topics

News & Features

AccuWeather Prime

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

Top Stories

Weather Forecasts

Surge of heat to bring hottest weather since last summer to Northeast

4 hours ago

Weather News

Anti-cyclonic whirlwinds seen on video towering into sunny sky

12 hours ago

Weather News

Jersey Shore drama: Not enough sand at beach ahead of Memorial Day

11 hours ago

Pakistan zoo animals try to stay cool during heat wave

1 day ago 0:43

Podcast: Introducing AccuWeather Premium Plus

More Stories

Featured Topic

Local Arthritis Forecast

Featured Stories

Last moments before Mount St. Helens eruption caught on camera Coolers that'll help you beat the extreme summer heat 16 spring essentials that you shouldn't do without
AccuWeather Weather News What’s behind the lack of color in autumn foliage across parts of Northeast?
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs Podcast RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Shop AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Weather Blogs Winter Weather
© 2021 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | TAG Disclosure | Do Not Sell My Data checkmark Confirmed Not Selling Your Data

We have updated our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

I Understand

Get AccuWeather alerts as they happen with our browser notifications.

Notifications Enabled

Thanks! We’ll keep you informed.

FEEDBACK