Skyline Locust Tree

Spot the colors of fall by leaf peeping

Travel anywhere to find your favorite niche fall. Locally, the sheet of voyeurism can be done in your own yard and anywhere in the counties of Miller, Camden or Morgan. Enjoy the view of the high cliffs that are exposed to sunlight by land, water or air. Captivating colors can be found in cemeteries, along roads and local parks, such as Bennett Springs. Ha Ha Tonka State Park offers awe-inspiring scenery in each view. The Bagnell Dam lookout gives a majestic view of the earth and water as does the historic Wilmore Lodge. Attend and enjoy the festivities fall short trips. Create lasting memories by pressing special foliage into a “peepers” scrapbook. The mixture of fall’s brilliant colors is the result of the chemical processes that take place in the tree as the season changes from summer to winter. During the spring and summer the green leaves contain chlorophyll cells to sustain the tree’s nutrition for growth. Leaves contain yellow and orange pigments as well, but green is the most prominent. The changing colors of fall are  due to “changes in the length of daylight and changes in temperature, the leaves stop their food-making process. The chlorophyll breaks down, the green color disappears, and the yellow to orange colors become visible and give the leaves part of their fall splendor… As the fall colors appear, other changes are taking place. At the point where the stem of the leaf is attached to the tree, a special layer of cells develops and gradually severs the tissues that support the leaf. At the same time, the tree seals the cut, so that when the leaf is finally blown off by the wind or falls from its own weight, it leaves behind a leaf scar. Temperature, light, and water supply have an influence on the degree and the duration of fall color. Low temperatures above freezing will favor anthocyanin formation, producing bright reds in maples. However, early frost will weaken the brilliant red color. Rainy and/or overcast days tend to increase the intensity of fall colors. The best time to enjoy the autumn color would be on a clear, dry and cool (not freezing) day.” We’ve grown accustomed to the sights and sounds of summer. The “hootie” owls, the frogs, the locust and the cricket songs disappear as the summer fades into fall. Now begins the winds of winter as it sweeps away the foliage into history. Those slow-moving folks gazing at the colorful landscapes, known as “Leaf Peepers” are savoring the knowledge of knowing that no two leafs are ever the same.

Alamosa Trees » Front Range Tree List Offers Tips for Alamosa ...

3 August 2011 by Marilyn Loser

Alamosa environment is more difficult than the Front Range of Colorado. However, we can learn a lot of information "Recommendation List Beach Front Tree (FRTRL)" *. It rates of trees "A" to "D" and includes information on water requirements, soil, availability and resistance to cold. Only trees that were observed for 10 years on the list "A".

Sharron Harris, executive director of the Nursery and Greenhouse Association of Colorado, has selected a group of Colorado State University horticulturists, landscape architects, municipal and forestry nursery and greenhouse owners to expand the list.

The group's objective was to encourage any person who plants a tree to plant palette more diverse and resilient. He considered the health of trees, not the air. As with food crops, monoculture tree "lends itself to pests and diseases more easily," said Harris.

“Colorado is not the easiest place to have a garden or a landscape or grow anything,” Harris says. “The tree that gets planted and dies in a year — that’s not good for anyone.”

I talked with local nursery/greenhouse representatives Ruthie Brown (Alamosa Green Spot) and Stephanie Coley (North River Greenhouse and Landscaping) to find out about their tree recommendations and inventories.

On the FRTRL “A” list is the Tatarian Maple which is available from the Green Spot this year and will be available from the North River Greenhouse next year. There are two specimens of this small tree on Main Street in downtown Alamosa – one in the 700 block by St. Ives and another in the 500 block by the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Locust trees are popular at both local establishments. Thornless common Honeylocusts (gleditsia triacanthos v. inemis) Shademaster and Skyline rate the “A” list with the caution to wrap young trees to protect the tender bark. The North River Greenhouse also sells the Black Locust ‘Purple Robe’ (robinia pseudoacacia) which has stellar clumps of fragrant blossoms and was beautiful in Alamosa this early summer. It rates the “D” list due to possible borer damage.  The few specimens I’ve seen in town don’t display borer damage symptoms such as dead, broken branches. I don’t know if our cold temperatures discourage the pest.  Anyone know?

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