Where is there the most fall color? [OC]Submitted by cremepat t3_xx4573 in dataisbeautiful
Lunares t1_ira7t4q wrote
Is basal area the best way to do it?
The issue with utah/colorado is that by far the most of our color changing trees are aspens which have a small trunk area to leaf ratio than the east. You can find significant color trees on the east side of colorado for example with them.
Purpl3Unicorn t1_ira9dmr wrote
As someone who grew up in Michigan and moved to Colorado. The colors in Colorado do not compare to out east and yet everyone seems to go bonkers over a few aspens.
The biggest difference is the variety of colors, out east there are a bunch of different tree types so you get so many different colors.
InkBlotSam t1_irawaqv wrote
It's not just the aspens though, it's the juxtaposition of aspens against the mountain backdrop, which they don't have in Michigan.
No one goes crazy for big patches of Colorado aspens on the plains.
Lunares t1_irag2pv wrote
Oh absolutely the color variation is better with oaks and such in the east
But this graph is for density of color changing trees
jotegr t1_iram4hm wrote
Nothing like fall in the upper peninsula/around Superior. Probably one of the things I miss about leaving for out west.
The western fall is very pretty and the Aspens and larches are gorgeous, but it is funny how people absolutely lose their minds over a spattering of larches in an otherwise green forest.
jotegr t1_iralvlh wrote
Thing about out west is yes, you have huge Aspen stands, larches, cottonwoods, and a few more that change colour. But the landscape is largely dominated by trees that don't change colour.
In parts of out east it's colour changing trees as far as the eye can see in all directions.
Gastronomicus t1_iraqdyj wrote
It definitely isn't. The colour change is a function of many parameters, including difference in day/night air temperatures, day length, specific species, summer conditions, winter conditions, etc. In the end, more spectacular colour changes occur in the north-eastern part of the temperate hardwood range and montane ecosystems with colder nights.
jrkib8 t1_irbg8nc wrote
Basal area is fine. The r value of the diameter at breast height (DBH) to mean crown radius (MCR) is 0.77 meaning the DBH is a very good indicator of the MCR. I live in CO and am from VA so have spent a lot of time in Shenandoah and WVA.
Aspens have one of the highest ratios of DBH to MCR of any deciduous trees. This means it's the opposite. They have relatively smaller canopies for their trunk thickness.
pspahn t1_irb4psn wrote
Likewise, with something like Populus deltoides ssp monilifera there will be one to a few massive trees that stand alone in an area, or maybe a long line of them following a water channel. Trunk size can get very big, up to and sometimes over 10' in diameter. Two of these trees in a single acre would put them beyond the top of the scale being used.
Now looking at the graphic, the eastern front of the Rockies and down into Nebraska, Kansas, etc, the color is basically showing "zero fall color" and that just doesn't really jive with reality.
Yes, it's not a dense forest with many different species, but I am not sure why the shouldn't be included in something showing "fall color" because even standing alone they can be incredibly dramatic.
anonkitty2 t1_irccovz wrote
Look more carefully. The eastern half of Kansas does have a delicate orange tint. Near Wichita and in spots near the Missouri state line, you can see splashes of brighter orange.
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