Red fall color linked to poor soil
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2003982510_fallcolors30.html

What causes fall color? Experts explain
http://www.cantondailyledger.com/articles/2007/10/30/news/news08.txt

Fall Foliage Maps
http://www.weather.com/activities/driving/fallfoliage/

The Miracle of Fall-About Fall Color
http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/fallcolor/about.html

Fall Colors for 2007
http://www.fs.fed.us/news/fallcolors/

Poets.org: Autumn
http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/19533

The annual series of peripatetic pilgrimages devoted to catching the fall colors across the colors is nearing its end, but there's interesting news afoot for those who love the reds, yellows, and other flashes of brilliant color that can be found in all types of forested areas. At the annual conference of the Geological Society of America, researcher Emily Habinck presented research on the fall foliage of a nature preserve in Charlotte, North Carolina which indicated that trees whose roots are in soil that is relatively low in nitrogen may in fact produce more red pigments. These pigments are known as anthocyanins, and the color that they produce effectively protects the leaves. Of course, readers should note that it's not too late to catch some of these fall colors, so it's worth taking a look at some of the sites listed below in advance of taking a short road trip to find some remaining fall foliage in the coming weeks. [KMG]

The first link will take visitors to a piece about these recent arboreal findings from this Tuesday's Seattle Times. The second link leads visitors to a piece from the Canton (Illinois) Daily Ledger, which discusses the causes of fall color. Moving on, the third link takes visitors to the Fall Foliage page created by the Weather Channel. Here, visitors can view photos of fall foliage and learn more about top foliage destinations across the nation. The good folks at the University of Illinois Extension created the fourth link, which provides a brief background on the science behind fall colors and also offers up a number of external links that provide further details. The fifth link leads to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's fall color page. Visitors to this site will find a fall color hotline, information about fall foliage "hotspots" in the National Forest system, and links to state fall color websites. Finally, the last link leads to autumnal poems offered by the Academy of American Poets. Visitors to this site should spend a few moments lingering over poems like James Hoch's "Late Autumn Wasp" and Faiz Ahmed Faiz's "When Autumn Came". [KMG]