This year, fall colors will be popping up early in some parts of Connecticut, even late August or early September.
But that doesn’t mean the state’s iconic fall foliage will be dull this year.
The early display of color may be from stressed trees, Sharon M. Douglas, chief scientist in the department of plant pathology and ecology at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, believes.
In some cases, the early color might be traced to limb or root damage from the October snowstorm or the tropical storms, she said.
In fact, one of her colleagues thinks Connecticut is set up for a potentially grand display of color this fall.
Jeffrey S. Ward, chief scientist in the experiment station’s forestry and horticulture department, said it is possible the peak color might be days earlier this year – the peak in recent years has tended to be around mid-October in much of the state – but the color might also extend over a longer period, he said.
“I think we are in for an absolutely incredible year. I think this has the potential to be spectacular,” Ward said. “I think it is going to be a slow-moving kaleidoscope of color.”
Read Steve Grant’s full story at Courant.com and find a map of peak foliage times, photo galleries and more.