2017 Fall Foliage In Bowie: When Will The Leaves Change Colors?

BOWIE, MD — Today is Oct. 1, and already the pumpkin spice is flowing and there's a nip in the air. But when will the leaves start changing in the Bowie area?

Technically, fall started Sept. 22, but as we all know in the D.C. area, the leaves don't really start to change until October -- although exactly when shifts each year.

Currently, the leaves are mostly green, even on the Blue Ridge mountains west of here which is usually where they first start changing, according to the Virginia Department of Forestry's fall foliage report. That report indicates we can expect to see peak fall colors in the latter half of October -- sometime between Oct. 15-31.

But that's peak fall colors, so we are going to see the leaves start to change sooner than that. In fact, in the higher elevations on the western end of the state, the leaves are starting to change, so it's slowly but surely making its way to the Maryland border. Since the western part of Virginia is expected to hit peak sometime around Oct. 10-20, about a week or so before us, it may be only a week before we start to notice fall colors in our area.

Maple, gum, ash, beech, and birch trees are likely to go first. The following chart will help you pick out which is which:

• ash - yellow, maroon
• beech - yellow to orange
• dogwood - scarlet to purple
• hickory - golden bronze
• oak - red, brown or russet
• poplar - golden yellow
• red maple - brilliant scarlet

Image via Anne Meadows