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magazine / so06
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September/October 2006 issue |
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Autumn’s palette
Quebec, Ontario and the New England states embrace their seasonal hues
By Jodi Di Menna
Winding its regular course around the globe last
October, a satellite captured the brilliant oranges
and reds of the maple, oak and sumac forests that
blanket the mountaintops of the Laurentians, Appalachians and
Adirondacks. Summertime greens linger in the warmer Lake
Ontario Basin and the valleys along the Ottawa, St. Lawrence
and Hudson rivers, while the concrete greys of Toronto and
Montréal stand in contrast to the burnished orange fields of
wheat and corn that surround them.
As summer turns to fall, daylight hours and temperatures
wane and leafy trees begin shutting down for the winter.
Photosynthesis slows, causing chlorophyll pigments in the
foliage to fade. As a result, the gold, orange and red hues of
carotenoid pigments and the scarlet and violet tones of anthocyanins
— masked by chlorophyll during the growing season —
are revealed, each species displaying its own characteristic colour.
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