Leaf Basics
This green pigment helps plants make food through photosynthesis.
What is chlorophyll?
This season triggers leaves to start changing colors.
What is fall (autumn)?
Trees that lose their leaves every fall.
What are deciduous trees?
The most common leaf color in fall.
What is yellow?
Trees shed leaves mostly to survive this season.
What is winter?
Leaves use this process to make food from sunlight.
What is photosynthesis?
Leaves stop producing this pigment in fall, revealing other colors
What is chlorophyll?
Trees that stay green all year.
What are evergreen trees?
This deep fall color appears when sugar gets trapped in leaves.
What is red?
The layer at the base of a leaf where it breaks off in fall.
What is the abscission layer?
Tiny pores on leaves that allow gases to move in and out.
What are stomata?
Pigments responsible for yellow and orange colors.
What are carotenoids?
Maple trees are famous for this fall color.
What is red?
States like Vermont and Maine attract tourists in fall for this activity.
What is leaf-peeping (or viewing fall foliage)?
This natural event returns nutrients from fallen leaves to the soil.
What is decomposition?
The tubes inside a leaf that carry water and nutrients.
What are veins?
Pigments that create red and purple colors.
What are anthocyanins?
This type of tree has needles instead of broad leaves.
What is a conifer?
A mix of pigments can create this warm fall color often seen in sugar maples.
What is orange?
Scientists who study plants.
What are botanists?
The three main things plants need for photosynthesis.
What are sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide?
The reason leaves fall off trees — trees are conserving these two resources.
What are water and energy?
Oaks often turn this color in fall.
What is brown?
Weather conditions that create the most vivid leaf colors (name two).
What are sunny days and cool nights?
The scientific term for leaf loss.
What is abscission?