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I live in New England and have strong opinions about places. I love the wilderness, hiking, lakes and hate cities. So Cliff wants my focus to be outdoors and out of the ordinary and talk straight. Suits me. Looking forward to some good feedback and comments on my posts. I'm also setting my own blog up at the moment which I'll let you know when it's ready for public consumption. See you soon, Yankee Traveler

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Vermont Foliage Harvest Events

September 7th, 2008 • Related • Filed Under

Vermont Farm ImageThe New England state of Vermont is famous for skiing in winter, maple sugaring in spring, and summer vacations of hiking, swimming holes and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.

But the most special time remains its spectacular fall foliage season where thousands of leaf peppers converge on mountain slopes, forests and rural roads, to marvel at one of nature’s finest annual shows.

But foliage season in Vermont offers more than just driving from town to town and clicking your camera. This year Vermont is promoting foliage activities beyond the leaf changing event. Vermont is home to orchards, wineries and farms where foliage time also means harvest time.

And the theme of my post today is activities and events celebrating Vermont’s fruits of its land.

Apples to iPods:

Vermont is prime apple country, and you’ll find everything from Cortland and Liberty, to Royal Red Delicious, and a variety of heirloom varieties. Many orchards also offer fresh apple cider and cider donuts. But maybe the best part about apple picking in Vermont is the “famous” wooden apples.

If you find one during your time in the orchards this fall, don’t toss it aside, because it means you’ve won an iPod! The State of Vermont has teamed up with Vermont based online Apple retailer Small Dog Electronics to create Apples to iPods. It’s free - my favorite price - and open to everyone starting September 15th, so choose an orchard and get pickin’! For more about Apples to iPods, visit www.applestoipods.com

Grapes in a Bottle:

Whether or not you found a wooden apple, a glass of organic Vermont wine will ensure you wrap up your day in style. Certain varieties of grapes thrive in Vermont’s northern climate, and result in wines that can compete with those from Napa, Australia, Chile, France and Italy. Vermont is home to several notable wineries that host wine tasting, and provide tours of the vineyard and wine making process.

Shelburne Vineyard - located just south of Burlington - has won awards for their organically and sustainably grown Riesling, Cayuga, Vidal, and Vignoles wines. And you can sample the wines in their state-of-the-art 19th century shingle-style tasting facility, tour the fields and processing area, and even look into their organic grape-growing workshops and wine-making classes. For more about Shelburne Vineyard, visit www.shelburnevineyard.com

Pumpkin Patch:

If you’re looking to make this Thanksgiving’s pie from scratch, or the kids have plans for the scariest jack-o-lantern ever, in virtually every part of the state you’ll find farms that will let you pick your own pumpkin. At Green Mountain Orchard in Putney - www.greenmtorchards.com - you can walk the fields and pick the cream of the crop. Many farms also offer hayrides, corn mazes, and haunted forests. For more information on where to pick your own pumpkins, visit www.pickyourown.org/VT.htm

This autumn, look beyond the leaves, and take a piece of Vermont home with you. More information on Vermont’s fall harvest is available at www.travel-vermont.com

For more ideas and suggestions on fall foliage in Vermont and New England check out our special fall foliage page by clicking here.

And if you want to get our new postings without coming back to the blog then just subscribe to our RSS feed by clicking here.

See you soon,

Yankee Traveler
New England Travel Online Magazine

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There Are 4 Responses So Far. »

  1. Gravatar

    Comment by jamie on 8 September 2008:

    I’ve heard that with the wet summer in New England there may be an early fall with muted foliage colors. Wondering if you guys are seeing anything yet to validate or suggest otherwise? Thinking of a trip in mid-October to vermont and wondering about dates.

    Thanks also for an outstanding blog on New England - keep it up.

    jamie

  2. Gravatar

    Comment by captivating capiz on 11 September 2008:

    I’ve always looked forward to visit other lands of treasure like what we have here in the Philippines to which I love so much writing about. I never imagined that New England could be a sight for such mind like what I have when reading blogs about places and amazing little and big wonders of nature.

    I like the way you described Vermont (”home to orchards, wineries and farms where foliage time also means harvest time.”) and it made me feel envious about having such a astoundingly beautiful place like Vermont. If life would be better next year, maybe me and my family can come places like it aside from traveling to our local natural scenic beauty here in our native land, the Philippines.

    I hope you visit my blog too about the captivating Capiz Treasures that we came to share with our people as well as the tourists that come here each year for an unforgettable travel.

  3. Gravatar

    Comment by James H. Hyde on 11 September 2008:

    Hi Jamie,

    Your comment is propitiously timed. I’m finishing up a section about the fall on my site, http://www.newenglandtimes.com. What follows is a shortened version of the science behind tree colors.

    First, if you’re thinking about coming to Vermont in October, you’re likely to have missed the fall foliage peak. Predictions this year are that northern Vermont will go into peak during the last two weeks in September. Southern parts of the state may still have color in October, but there will be quite a few bald spots (no PC comments please. I’m follically challenged myself!!).

    Many believe that summer weather determines how deep the hues will be. Most botanists believe that spring and fall play far bigger roles than does summer. If weather conditions are right in the spring, that helps to some extent with leaf brightness. However, fall itself is the final determiner of color brightness. If we have sunny days and long, cool nights (between 32 and 45 degrees) we’re far more likely to have brighter colors.

    The leaves that turn yellow or orange have yellow or orange pigments from the time they first start to grow. They get covered by chlorophyll, which turns them green. But, as the days get shorter and the nights longer, a shut off of chlorophyll to the leaves is triggered in the tree, which then prepares itself for dormancy. It stays alive during the winter with glucose it stored in the summer.

    As the green dissipates, the yellow, gold and orange pigments are revealed and they then spread to color the whole leaf.

    With red trees, the color isn’t determined until the fall. Tree food is glucose, which is manufactured in the tree by water and carbon dioxide, the latter of which is captured by the leaves. When the chlorophyll is cut off, glucose is trapped in the leaves’ veins. That turns red relatively quickly because of the red and purple pigments.

    While I say that the forecast is for peak to arrive in northern Vermont during the last two weeks in September, no one really knows for certain. The truth is, Mother Nature can be arbitrary and capricious, and while various sources see leaf peak beginning in September, it could be either delayed or sped up.

    As of today, the leaves are still green in northern Vermont. A few young, rogue maples are beginning to show their colors, but the colors are nowhere near what they will be.

    However waiting until October, depending on where in Vermont you plan to go, could land you in the midst of “stick season,” when the leaves have already fallen and bare limbs clatter in fall’s winds.

    No guarantees, but I’d recommend that you come up here during the final two weeks of September and maybe the first week of October, but no later.

    James H. Hyde
    Editor
    http://www.newenglandtimes.com
    and http://www.exploringnewengland.com

  4. Gravatar

    Comment by Cliff Calderwood on 11 September 2008:

    Great explanation Jim - thanks for taking this one. Hope this helps Jamie.

    Of course as Jim indicates, when all the science is discussed and evaluated Mother Nature tends to do what she darn pleases, and we all hope she pleases to give us a spectacular foliage season, especially for those that have booked their vacations to New England many months ago.

    Cliff

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