Trees and Shrubs with Fall Color
Plants change color because of shorter hours of sunlight and cooler temperatures. These two conditions trigger the chlorophyll in the plant to break down. The pigment that kept the leaves green throughout the summer now causes the leaves to turn red, orange, or yellow. The intensity of the color is controlled by the weather. A combination of sunny, warm days and cool nights gives the best color. Of course, the healthier the tree, the better the color.
| Yellow: | Orange-Red: | Red-Purple: |
| Ash (some) Aspen Birch (some) Bittersweet Bud’s Yellow Dogwood Bur Oak Beautyberry Clethra Elm Ginkgo Hackberry Hazelnut Honeylocust Ironwood Witch Hazel Kentucky Coffeetree Larch Linden Poplar Swamp White Oak Variegated Norway Maple Weeping Mulberry Weeping Willow Winterberry |
Autumn Jazz Viburnum Boston Ivy Spirea (some) Cotoneaster Cutleaf Staghorn Sumac Cutleaf Stephandra Golden Lights Azalea Goldframe Spirea Staghorn Sumac Maple (most) Plum Renaissance Spirea Serviceberry Thornless Hawthron |
Aglo Rhododendron Anthony Waterer Spirea Red Twigged Dogwood Arrowwood Viburnum White Oak Chokeberry Dogwood (some) Engelman Ivy Isanti Dogwood White Lights Azalea Miss Kim Lilac Mohican Viburnum Nannyberry Viburnum Virginia Creeper Neon Flash Spirea Northern Hi-Lights Azalea Pagoda Dogwood PJM Rhododendron |
| Yellow-Orange | Red | Orange-Scarlet |
| Bridalwreath Spirea Cotoneaster Rose (some) Dwarf Fothergilla Lemon Lights Azalea Mountain Ash Nordine Smokebush |
American Cranberry Viburnum Burning Bush Dwarf Bush Cranberry Compact American Viburnum European Mountain Ash Glossy Black Chokeberry Little Princess Spirea Northern Pin Oak Wentworth Viburnum Showy Mountain Ash Rose Glow Barberry |
Smooth Sumac Fragrant Sumac Cutleaf Smooth Sumac Crimson Pygmy Barberry |
| Scarlet | ||
| Amur Maple Compact Burning Bush Henry’s Garnet Sweet Spire |