{"id":45518,"date":"2025-09-11T13:15:31","date_gmt":"2025-09-11T17:15:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/?p=45518"},"modified":"2025-09-11T14:22:28","modified_gmt":"2025-09-11T18:22:28","slug":"maryland-fall-foliage-preview-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/2025\/09\/11\/maryland-fall-foliage-preview-2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Maryland Fall Foliage Preview 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"

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New Germany State Park in Garrett County. Photo by Melissa Nash, Maryland Forest Service.<\/p><\/div>\n

Welcome to the Maryland Fall Foliage Report for 2025. Fall officially begins on Monday, Sept. 22, but we\u2019re expecting to see color changes in the coming weeks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Our weekly reports featuring observations from Department of Natural Resources\u2019 foresters, naturalists, and rangers throughout the state will be posted every Thursday into November.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Maryland had a typical spring and early summer. Rainfall amounts were at or just below normal levels, which points to a colorful fall, according to the Maryland Forest Service.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Recently rain has been absent \u2013 officially classified as “abnormally dry” on the drought monitor map \u2013 and with cool nighttime temperatures and bright sunny days, the trees are preparing for winter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This year\u2019s forecast suggests late September to early October will be the time head west to see fall foliage in Maryland\u2019s mountains.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are seeing some trees turn early in Garrett County, with a combination of the dry weather and leaf spot that has affected many maples,\u201d said Melissa Nash, forester in Allegany and Garrett counties. \u201cWith the wet weather earlier this spring, we have seen more prevalence of the fungal disease tar spot on maples, which causes black spots to appear on the leaves. It’s generally cosmetic, but can cause premature leaf drop. So between that and the dry weather throughout August, we are seeing some leaves start to fall early.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As we get into October and November color will spread east. It\u2019s difficult to predict how that pattern will develop but we generally see northern Maryland\u2019s trees change after Garrett, Allegany, and Washington counties. Frederick, Carroll, Baltimore, Harford, and Cecil counties follow the western most areas of Maryland, mainly due to elevation and temperature. Then things spread south and east. The southern parts of the state generally start to change before the Eastern Shore.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThroughout Washington County and western Frederick County, higher elevations of rocky mountain ridges are showing color (birch, blackgum, and some red maple), likely as a result of the flash drought we find ourselves in,\u201d said forester Aaron Cook, based at Indian Springs Wildlife Management Area in Clear Spring. \u201cUniformly everything else is relatively green right now.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

When is Peak Color?<\/b><\/p>\n

Remember, this is just a prediction, there is no way to \u201ccrystal ball\u201d fall foliage colors. There are many factors at play here. One good storm and everything goes out the window. Here we go\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n