Why are this year's autumn colours so late?
Why are this year's autumn colours so late?
The annual golden display of autumn leaves as the daylight hours fade is down to weather conditions.
As he enjoys an autumn walk in the woods near his home in the New Forest, Bill Reynolds has noticed "things have altered a bit".
"There are a lot of oak trees here - they seem to be late in developing the autumn colours.
“I think the difference is about a fortnight, and it’s slowly getting later still”.
He has been taking photos of the area for several years and sharing them on his Southampton to the New Forest Facebook group where other members have also spotted trees staying greener for longer.
"I'm just a layman, but it's what I've noticed - it's not happened overnight, it's being going on for some time," he added.
Met Office statistics show average autumn temperatures in south central and south-east England increased from 5.8C between 1961 and 1990 to 7C from 2014 to 2023.