It's a rite of passage of autumn. The leaves put on a show of color. This short-lived display of fall foliage is a natural response to the decreasing amounts of sunlight that accompany the slide into winter.

Weather plays a lead role in just how colorful the foliage will be. Warm, sunny days and cool but not freezing nights are ideal for producing the most spectacular colors. Lots of cloudy days and warm nights leads to a more drab display. And an early frost or heavy wind or rainstorm could quickly end the show.

There's not a whole lot of year-to-year variation in the peak foliage time for a particular location. But there is a north to south variation in the peak time because you lose sunlight hours a little more quickly the farther north you go. Thus the peak time ranges from mid-October in the Lehigh Valley to early November in central and southern Delaware and southern New Jersey.