|
|
Every fall, we see the leaves on our trees change from green to red, orange,
yellow and brown. Most people think that this "just happens," but did you ever
think about how it works?
First, let's go over what leaves are and what they do.
Most of the time, plants make their own food. They take water
to their roots from the ground and they take carbon dioxide from the air. The
chlorophyll in their leaves uses sunlight, water and
carbon dioxide to make plants' "food," called glucose. Most kinds of
chlorophyll are green, which gives leaves their green color.
Since winter days are short and dry, many plants stop making food. When the food
goes away, so does the chlorophyll. That's how the leaves are sort of drained from their
green color. Orange and yellow colors were in the leaves all summer, but the
green covered them up. Some leaves turn red.
These red through yellow colors come up in the fall,
from food trapped in the leaves. Brown colors are also made in the fall. They
come from wastes left in the leaves.
I hope you enjoyed my article! I promise to write some more!
-actingup9
|
