Fall foliage in Oklahoma

Oklahoma’s foliage is in the east and comes at the end of October. The Ozark country around Natural Falls turns first, with Beavers Bend and the Ouachitas around Talihina, Winding Stair Mountain and Robbers Cave following in the first week of November. Oaks and hickories dominate in bronze and gold; maple, sweetgum and black gum brighten the creek bottoms. West of the Cross Timbers the season is mostly cottonwood along the rivers and finishes in mid-November.

Color somewhere in the state: October and November
Trees: oak, hickory, maple, sweetgum, black gum and cottonwood
Region: Great Lakes & Midwest

Those are the months when color is present somewhere in Oklahoma, 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 Oklahoma 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. Oklahoma borders:

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 Oklahoma you would like covered? Write to fallcastapp@gmail.com.