Fall foliage in New Jersey

New Jersey runs from the Kittatinny Ridge to the shore over about two weeks. High Point, Stokes and the Delaware Water Gap turn in the third week of October; the Highlands and the Watchungs follow at the end of the month; the Pine Barrens and the coast finish in early November. Oaks, hickories and maple color the ridges, and red maple and black gum along the Pinelands rivers give the south its reds.

Those are the months when color is present somewhere in New Jersey, from its highest ground to its lowest. Any one location changes over a much shorter period than that.

Why the timing shifts from year to year

Shortening days start the process, so most places in New Jersey change at close to their usual time each year. Within the state, elevation and latitude account for most of the difference: higher and more northern ground generally changes first, and lower, sheltered ground last. Weather has more effect on how strong the color is than on when it appears. Cool nights and sunny days favor the reds, a dry summer mutes them, and a hard freeze or a windstorm can strip a slope in a day. What determines the timing goes through this in detail.

Nearby states

Fall color does not follow state lines. New Jersey borders:

• Delaware fall foliage
• New York fall foliage
• Pennsylvania fall foliage

Timing for a specific place

This page describes a whole state, which is about as precise as a season can be described in words. Conditions at one overlook on one weekend are a narrower question, and that is the one Fallcast answers: an expected period of color for a specific location, with a confidence attached, updated through the season as the trees change. It is coming to iPhone this fall.

Questions, or somewhere in New Jersey you would like covered? Write to fallcastapp@gmail.com.