Every Fall, trees change their leaf color from green to gold, crimson, and orange, when trees start getting ready for winter; being rooted in place, they have to survive the cold until the spring.
Why some trees lose their leaves
Broad leaf trees produce a colorful display that defines autumn. A bright green chemical called chlorophyll helps with photosynthesis in leaves for most of the year, but as the days get shorter, the chlorophyll dies off and other chemicals become the main source of color.
Simultaneously, the tree starts to grow layers of scar tissue at the base of every leaf stem, and the leaf’s connection with the tree weakens so that wind and gravity pull the leaf away.
Why others don’t
Conifer trees on the other hand, have adapted to keep their greenery year around, and their needles lose much less water than broad leaves so can last much longer, saving energy.
Conifer needles do a little photosynthesis on warm days in the winter, and they can reuse their needles for several years before needing to replace them. That means they can’t throw away their needles during the winter.
What do they do have in common?
Both conifer and broad leaf trees save water during the winter without freezing because a tree can survive having ice crystals between its cells, but prevent the actual cells from freezing by taking advantage of a chemical reaction in water. In the fall, trees gradually dehydrate themselves to increase the concentration of sugar in their cells, and these sugar-heavy cells, make them resistant to freezing because sugar water doesn’t freeze easily.
Ice can still be a danger though as snow or ice can become heavy which can weigh on tree branches, causing them to break if they’re not flexible enough.
Fall is full of changes everywhere, and it’s the time of year when our trees bed themselves in for the winter. And if you need any of your trees examined in case they may not be strong enough or flexible enough to hold, give us a call.
Always use a qualified professional company like Quantum Tree Services to help with your foliage.
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