Why Do Leaves Change Color in the Fall? Miss Liz 2009

Leaves Little leaves Fall gently down, Red and yellow, Orange and brown.

Autumn leaves are Beautiful! But have you ever stopped And wondered why Leaves change from Green to red, orange, Yellow, brown?

In order to understand why leaves change color in the fall we must first understand photosynthesis. photosynthesis

A picture of Chlorophyll inside of a leafs cells.

In the fall Days grow shorter Nights grow longer Days and nights are colder Photosynthesis stops.

In the fall days grow shorter and Nights grow longer.

In the fall it becomes chilly or colder.

Plants need many Hours of sunlight, and Warmth to go Through Photosynthesis! So in the fall Photosynthesis STOPS!

If photosynthesis stops then the plant no longer produces the green color we see all summer! The green color is called chlorophyll. The green fades and leaves the reds, yellows Oranges and browns that were underneath The green all along!

This is a picture of the green fading out And the yellow, orange and red colors Showing through! The other colors were always there Hidden inside the leaf! We just could not see them because Green is such a strong color!

Happy Fall Y’all!

What to do with Autumn Leaves! Kick them. Catch them. Pick them. Snatch them. Romp them. Stomp them. Hurl them. Heave them. If you want to, Even leave them! By Douglas Florian

Have fun playing in the fall leaves!