Hike with an Arboretum ecologist and take in the changing colors of the Arboretum’s trees. This seasonal stroll will give you the chance to view fall colors and learn what seasonal changes trees go through each year. You’ll get a chance to hear about the following:
- Why leaves change color and drop
- What discoveries scientists are making about these changes
- Why some seasons have great fall color and others don’t
- What the timing of fall color changes can tell us about the bigger picture of our climate and local environment
This program meets on-site at the Arboretum.
Instructor: Lucien Fitzpatrick, research assistant, forest ecology lab
Age: 16 and older
#N091
Lucien Fitzpatrick, research assistant, forest ecology lab
Lucien Fitzpatrick is the research assistant for the forest ecology lab, working under Dr. Christy Rollinson. His work focuses on understanding how forests respond to climate variability and change. He and the Forest Ecology lab manage a large active group of volunteers that observe the phenology of hundreds of taxa in the Arboretum’s living collections in collaboration with the USA National Phenology Network. Lucien uses those observations to make predictive models of the timing of spring budburst and fall color change, investigating the factors that lead to these events and how that timing is shifting because of climate change.
What to Know
Held outdoors. Please dress for the weather.
Wear comfortable shoes. Plan to walk more than a mile over uneven terrain.
Program Schedule
Section A: Friday, October 21, 2022, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Section B: Friday, October 28, 2022, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
