The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-10-11
Iowa Fields and Woods
An Interesting Study in Autumn Colors by Iowa Ma
ture Lover.
the tints OF tae leaves, causing them
to lose much of their beauty.
ture Lover

the tints of tle leaves, causing them
to lose much of their beauty.
Late in the summer, when the
buds for next year have been formed
and filled in the axis of the leaves,
and the work of tle year is done, the
tree begins to prepare for the win
ter. All summer long the leaves have
been filled with a green substance
4 which the scientists call chlorophyl-
a word which comes from two Greek
words meaning light green and leaf.
The office of chlorophyl Is to manu-
! facture plant food from the sunshine
and the soil water, converting them
into starches and sugars for the
growth of the tree. The leaves are
4 the chemical laborat tories where the
food for the tree is manufactured. In
natures wise and wondrous economy
nothing is wasted. When the tree be.
] gins to prepare for the winter these
sugars and albuminoids are Withdrawn
/ through the leaf stalks into the tree so
that they shall not be lost While these
albuminoid matters are passing from
the leaves to the twigs it is necessary
that they be protected from the
strong light and some scientists are of
| tae opinion that the coloring in the
leaves serves this purpose. But here
seems clearer and better reason
than this for the coloring itself
All leaves contain a yellow matter
called xanlhophyl and when the
green chlorophyl breaks UP this yell
low xanthopayl is exposed. In some
trees this is the only change. The
leaves turn from green to yellow,
sc'aetime turn rusty brown and fall
But in other cases the breaking up
of tie chlorophyl starts chemical
charges in coloring substance in the
leaf called antlocyanin When such
! ferments are only slightly acid the
! coloring of the leaves is almost blue
! as in the beginning of the coloring of
| the ash. AS the acids are developed
reds of varying brilliancy are pro-
A ouSCu, uSpSAuHlS II WOulu SSSnl, Ncly
largely upon the amount of acidity.
The scientists are frank to say that
the problem has not yet been COM
i pletely worked out; but these are its
main results. 1t may easiy be under
stood that the mixtures of the various
substances in chemical changes may
result in an unlimited number of
shades and tints of red, violet, purple,
orange, salmon and yellow, as we see
them this week on the hillsides. And
4 thus both observation and science
seem to prove that the frost has very
little to do with the autumn coloring,
except as 1t stops the grown of the
leaf and starts these processes of de-
cay. They would not come so soon If
there We're no frost, but they would
certainly come.
There is almost limitless material
for study in these autumn colora.
ations. The careful observer will soon
note that all the changes are from
of sunrise not like those of sun
set There may be here and there an
exception but this is the general rule.
For example. The poison ivy begins
with rose red and lightens to a cop
perry red and a golden yellow. It's
color depends somewhat upon its To-
cation; it would seem the moister the
pace the deeper the color. Along the
old river road southwest of the city
there Is gorgeous display of it; al
most every leaf a rich red. In Bever
park, just at the left of the Grand
avenue entrance small tree is en-
circled with 1t; in this drier place al
most every leaf is golden yellow
The ash trees have been more beauti
full this fall than they have been for
many years. The exquisite gradations
of coloring have been unmarried by
frost The coloring of this sree is one
of the most interesting. 1t begins
with the faintest tinge of purple up.
on the topmost leaves, as if a gosca
mer veil Of purple had been spread
over the upper part of the tree. In a
day or two the purple tone on
the topmost leaves is more decided
and is reaching down to touch the
leaves on the lower twigs. Then the
leaves begin to show chocolate tones
then coppery yellow, then salmon
yellow and sometimes almost pure
yellow just as the leaves are about to
fall. AS the afternoon sun lights UP
these gradations of color, there is oft
en- just a suggestion of lilac tinge
giving peculiar beauty to the tree
Panicled dogwood shows subtle
shades Of green and purple, 1t Is one
of the most interesting of the shrubs
In October. The older wild cherry
trees ripen their leaves into beauti-
full wine color and often they begin to
tighten the hiilsides In September
while most of the other trees are
green. Among the most beautiful OF
all the autumn leaves are those on the
young shoots of the wild cherry and
the choke cherry. They grade from
an exquisite rose red to a yellow. The
sycamore tree on the banks OF the