If you’re planning on leaf peeping in New Jersey this weekend, there are plenty of places to see bright shades of red, orange, and yellow leaves.

The latest fall foliage condition map published by New Jersey Forest Service This season’s foliage colors for Friday shows are at their peak this week in many parts of central and southern New Jersey, while foliage colors are now past their peak in most parts of northern New Jersey.

Leaf colors look their best in Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Somerset and Union counties, as well as parts of Atlantic, Burlington, Cape May and Ocean counties, the forest service reported.

Peak time for best leaf colors

In late September, the state forest service released a map showing a timeline of when to expect the best leaf colors this fall.

Generally, peak colors were expected in early to mid-October in northern New Jersey, mid-to-late October in north-central parts of the state, and late October along the Jersey Shore and South Jersey.

These predictions appear to hold true in most parts of the state.

in it 2024 fall foliage forecast Released in early September, AccuWeather reports that the intensely hot and relatively dry conditions we are experiencing New Jersey this summer Autumn leaves can dampen our season.

AccuWeather has predicted that the Garden State will likely experience duller leaf colors than normal this fall.

There have been mixed results so far this season; While vibrant leaf colors were obtained in some regions, colors that were not as vibrant as normal were obtained in other regions.

And some leaves fell from the trees earlier than usual because severe drought conditions. As of this week, 69% of New Jersey is facing moderate drought conditions and nearly a third of the state is facing severe drought.

The whole state is under control watch droughtIt urges residents and businesses across the state to voluntarily conserve water.

If drought conditions persist, the drought watch could be upgraded to a more severe drought warning or a drought emergency, where water use restrictions would become mandatory, state officials said.

In addition to the drought spell, major restrictions on outdoor burning The sanction was imposed by New Jersey officials because dry conditions have led to more wildfires than usual this month.

Red flag warnings Announcements were made in 11 districts on Thursday because the fire risk was very high.

As of late Friday morning, no part of the Garden State is under a red flag warning (the most serious type of fire alert) but “the risk of fire spread continues to increase” in all 21 counties due to low humidity and dry brush and light winds. National Weather Service noted.