Droughts bring early flush of color
Fall leaves reaching peak earlier than last year
Leaves blanket the ground around Hermann Monument. Photo by Dylan Jackson
Red leaves climb the fence of Johnson Park as baseball season waits for spring. Photo by Dylan Jackson
Carotenoid compounds are responsible for these orange and yellow leaves on the corner of Washington and 1st North Street. Photo by Dylan Jackson
Leaves blanket the ground around Hermann Monument. Photo by Dylan Jackson
Red leaves climb the fence of Johnson Park as baseball season waits for spring. Photo by Dylan Jackson
Carotenoid compounds are responsible for these orange and yellow leaves on the corner of Washington and 1st North Street. Photo by Dylan Jackson
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NEW ULM – If fall feels like it's moving quicker than usual, you wouldn't be wrong. According to the Department of Natural Resources Fall Color Finder map, leaves are projected to peak earlier than previous years.
As of Tuesday, the DNR map shows that in New Ulm, 25-50% of leaves have reached fall colors. The west part of Brown County is further along, with 50-75% of their leaves having reached fall colors.
Leaf peaks refers to the point when 75-100% of trees in a designated area have changed to their fall colors.
The map projects that all of Brown County's leaves will have passed their peak colors in a little over a week, on Oct. 21. For reference, in 2025 leaves didn't pass peak until Oct. 29, more than a full week later.
These rapid leaf changes are due to dryness.
National Weather Service Twin Cities Meteorologist Joe Calderone said that most of the state has been in a drought for most of the year.
"If you combine [the drought] with the extra heat, it doesn't allow the trees to hold onto the moisture," Calderone said.
Once trees begin to lose their moisture, chlorophyll begins to break down, which results in the changing of the leaves. This typically begins in early September.
Once chlorophyll begins to break down, carotenoid compounds that present as yellows and oranges emerge. Sunlight tends to produce leaves with more vibrant colors, while leaves that spend lots of time in the shade appear more dull.
Although many associate the falling of leaves with the task of raking, if you prefer mowing to raking, the mulching of leaves can actually benefit your lawn.
According to the Wisconsin DNR, leaves hold potassium carbon, and phosphorus, all of which are necessary to plant wellbeing. By mowing your leaves, these nutrients can help your grass thrive.
"If you mulch leaves it is almost a fertilizer for grass growing in the winter," Calderone said.
After a Minnesota winter, leaves can be expected to begin their regrowth around April.