2022 MD Fall Foliage: Leaf Colors Emerge, 2 Counties Near Peak

MARYLAND — Leaves have just begun to change colors across most of Maryland, from Cecil County to Worcester and Howard to St. Mary's County, with only Garrett and Allegany counties showing leaf color near its peak, a state report said.

So far, 20 counties plus the city of Baltimore are just starting to show changes in leaf color with the two most western counties are near peak, according to Thursday's fall foliage report from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Patapsco Valley State Park is known for its scenery and many visitors head to the park this time of year to enjoy the fall foliage. The colors of the leaves are starting to change, the DNR report said.

In southern Maryland, the redbuds and mockernut hickories are losing their leaves first, with the oaks starting to follow suit. The goldenrods are tapering off but the frost-white asters are holding strong.

"We’ve had reports of fall changes beginning on the Eastern Shore but we’re still green for the most part," the DNR said. "The fall wildflowers are happy to steal the show for now, and can be seen popping up along country roads and at local farm stands."

As color begins to sweep Maryland, the 2022 Fall Foliage Prediction Map is a great tool to start planning leaf peeping tours instate and in neighboring states, too.

In Maryland, the week of Oct. 24 looks good for a fall leaf viewing trip.

David Angotti, an expert on statistics who lives in Tennessee, was in the property management business in 2013 when he created the first Fall Foliage Prediction Map for SmokyMountains.com to help visitors plan their vacations when autumn leaves are the most brilliant.

The backbone of the map is meteorology — temperature, moisture, sunlight and precipitation — but it incorporates historical and forecast data, including National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration precipitation forecasts, elevation, actual temperatures, temperature forecasts and average daylight exposure to develop each county’s fall baseline date.

For the second year, the map creators included the top places to see fall leaves in Maryland to help you plan leaf peering trips. Among them:

• Patapsco Valley State Park stretches 32 miles along the Patapsco River in Baltimore and Howard counties and offers some of the best autumn scenery in Maryland
• Elk Neck State Park located on a peninsula between the Chesapeake Bay and the Elk River combines colorful forests with sandy beaches for great viewing.
• Oregon Ridge Park near Cockeysville has hiking trails that showcase a tree-scape of yellow, orange and red.
• Other areas to visit close to the Baltimore-Washington metro area: Gwynnbrook Wildlife Management Area in Owings Mills, Baltimore County; Sugar Loaf Mountain Natural Resource Area in southern Frederick County; Seneca Creek State Park just southwest of Gaithersburg; and Dierssen Wildlife Management Area situated between the C&O Canal and the Potomac River in Montgomery County, offering first-rate opportunities for waterfowl watching and quiet interludes for strollers along the Canal Tow Path.

Once Angotti created the map for visitors to the Smokies, they then wanted to know about peak leaf peering times in other parts of Tennessee, so he decided to collect data for the entire country.

Map courtesy of SmokyMountains.com

To use the map, simply slide the scale to the right to see when leaves will peak in your state. Zero in on your county, and you'll be able to decide whether it's best to plan a northern, southern, eastern or western route.

What Causes The Different Colors

You probably remember from science class that the color change all starts with photosynthesis. Leaves constantly churn out chlorophyll — a key component in a plant’s ability to turn sunlight into the glucose it needs to thrive — from spring through early fall. Those cells saturate the leaves, making them appear green to the human eye.

But leaves aren’t green at all. Autumn is the time for leaves’ big reveal: their true color, unveiled as chlorophyll production grinds to a halt. The colors in fall’s breathtaking tapestry are influenced by other compounds, according to the national park’s website.

Beta-carotene, the same pigment that makes carrots orange, reflects the yellow and red light from the sun and gives leaves an orange hue.

The production of anthocyanin, which gives leaves their vivid red color, ramps up in the fall, protecting and prolonging the leaf’s life on a tree throughout autumn.

And those yellows that make you feel as if you’re walking in a ray of sunshine?

They’re produced by flavonol, which is part of the flavonoid protein family. It’s always present in leaves but doesn’t show itself until chlorophyll production begins to slow.