Almost overnight, it seems, trees, shrubs, vines, grasses and other growing things have donned nature’s most important color — green. The woods, fields, marshes, swamps and meadows all seem to sport every shade of green imaginable now.
To appreciate this springtime greenery, I suggest that on a sunny day, when the sun’s rays are streaming through the tree canopies, you take a stroll in your neighborhood or in the woods — or gaze at a forested mountain slope — and try to pick out all the shades. You might be amazed at the tremendous variety.
But be forewarned: There are so many tints of green among the oaks, hickories, maples, tulip poplars, sweet gums, pines, magnolias, vines, ferns and hundreds of other plants that one would be hard-pressed to describe them all.
During a spring walk in middle Georgia, I noticed that loblolly pines had pale green needles, while those of longleaf pines were bright green. A white oak’s leaves were dark green, while a water oak’s leaves were a dull, bluish green.
A mockernut hickory sported yellowish-green leaves. A tulip poplar had shiny, bright green foliage. A Carolina silver bell‘s leaves were lime green; a red maple‘s, reddish green; a sourwood‘s, emerald green.
Like the dazzling leaf colors of fall, a mix of green hues in a healthy forest in spring can be mesmerizing, fit for artists and poets. “In every wood in every spring there is a different green,” wrote poet and writer J.R.R. Tolkien.
As spring progresses into summer, the leaves of many trees will change into other green tints.
In all, color experts estimate there are about 300 shades of green in nature. A leaf’s age, shape, health, location and other factors help determine its greenness. Most important, though, is the plant’s species. Plants contain different types and amounts of chlorophyll pigments, the light-capturing substances that make a leaf green.
Chlorophyll is essential for photosynthesis, the process by which a green plant makes its own food — and what makes green plants essential for life on Earth.
IN THE SKY: From David Dundee, retired Tellus Science Museum astronomer: The moon will be full Monday. Mercury and Venus are low in the east before dawn. Mars is high in the west. Saturn rises in the east a few hours before sunrise. Jupiter is low in the west just after dark.
Charles Seabrook can be reached at charles.seabrook@yahoo.com.
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