{"id":25456,"date":"2023-09-20T13:19:42","date_gmt":"2023-09-20T17:19:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/?p=25456"},"modified":"2025-06-03T11:44:24","modified_gmt":"2025-06-03T15:44:24","slug":"early-fall-color-a-symptom-of-stress-purdue-landscape-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.purdue.edu\/fnr\/extension\/early-fall-color-a-symptom-of-stress-purdue-landscape-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Early Fall Color \u2013 A Symptom of Stress, Purdue Landscape Report"},"content":{"rendered":"

Purdue Landscape Report:<\/a> Many trees are planted for their beautiful fall color, especially in locations where the climate provides reliable autumn weather. I have said this multiple times during extension talks and conversations with submitters to the Purdue Pest & Plant Diagnostic Lab<\/a> (PPDL), but I seem to have not experienced a \u2018normal\u2019 fall since moving to Indiana with how erratic the weather has been from year to year. Depending on weather conditions, such as high heat and drought, colors may develop early or may be duller for specific varieties than expected.<\/p>\n

However, individual trees that begin to show fall colors earlier than expected (August, September, even early October) may be shouting out a proverbial cry for help. Plants will often show yellow or red foliage coloration during periods of stress, so this may occur at any point during spring, summer, or fall. Individual trees may also show fall coloration earlier than others of their species in the same area.\u00a0 Now is the time to keep an eye out for this kind of early fall color as it can give you a heads-up on issues you can expect next year.\"image<\/a><\/p>\n

When examining a tree with early fall color, I would recommend checking the following:<\/p>\n