nutsim’ ’u shus yu ’eeye’q tthu sht’aalusth tthu sts’alha’? | Why are the leaves changing colour? by Tara Morris, Ruby Peter, and Donna Gerdts
wulh yu xay’tl’thut. We are heading into fall.
ni’ wulh nem’ hwu tl’utl’iits’ tthu skweyul. The days are getting shorter.
ni’ wulh nem’ yu xay’tl’thut. The weather is getting cooler.
ni’ wulh nem’ yu ’eey’e’q tthu shtu’aal’usth tthu sts’alhas tthu thqet ’u kwsus yu xay’tl’thut. And now the leaves on the trees are starting to change color.
ni’ tthu thqet ’uwu kws ’iye’qs nuw’ yath ’ul’ ’uw’ tsqway st’e ’u tthu xpey’ulhp, ts’sey’, pashuluqw ’i’ tthu t’a’hwulhp — t’a’hw. Some trees stay green all year like the red cedar, the Douglas fir, the yellow cedar, and the balsam.
tthey’ thuthiqut ’i’ nilh tstth’e’lumutth’. These trees have pointy needles.
nilh ni’ swe’s snes conifers. They are called conifers.
qux thuthiqut ni’ tsts’alha’ ’uwu niis tstth’e’lum’utth’. But many of the trees have leaves instead of pointy needles.
thithu tthu sts’a’lha’s tthu ts’alhulhp, kwulala’ulhp, p’hwulhp, t’ulum’ulhp, ’i’ tthu qwa’upulhp. These trees include big leaf maple, red alder, garry oak, cherry, and crabapple.
nilh kwu’elh hiimut-s kws deciduous thqet. These are called deciduous trees.
nilh ni’ qux tthu shtu’aal’usth kws yu ’eeye’qs. Their leaves will change different colors.
ha’ ni’ hwt-siilh ’i’ ni’ qtl’um tun’ni’ ’u tthu thqet. Eventually they will drop to the ground.
nutsim’ ’u shus xte’ ’u tthey’? ni’ stsekwul’ ’u shus yu ’eey’e’q tthu shtu’aal’usth tthu sts’alha’? Why does this happen? Why do leaves change colors?
’ilhe lemut tthu sts’alha’. Let’s look at a leaf.
kwus tsqway tthu thuthiqut ’i’ tthu ni’ ts’iits’usum’ ’i’ nilh tthu hwqxa’wuth shtu’aal’usth xut’ustum’ chlorophyll. Leaves on most plants and trees are green because of a colorful chemical inside them called chlorophyll.
hay ’ul’ ’uy’alus tsqway tthey’ chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is bright green.
nilh xelu syaays. It is a special job.
nilh m’i sasut’utus kwus stth’etth’ukw’ tun’ni’ ’u tthu sum’shathut, ’u tthu syaqwum. It captures energy that is in sunlight.
nilh tun ni’ ’u tthu syaqwum tthu ni’ sasut’utus hwu q’et’um. Leaves use light energy to make sugar.
tun’ni’ ’ul’ ’u tthuw’ swe’s timuls ni’ hwu shkw’am’kw’um’s. The tree can then use its own energy.
nilh tthu xut’ustum’ chlorophyll ni’ hakwushus kwus thuytus tthu swe’s s’ulhtuns tun’ni’ ’u tthu syaqwum. Chlorophyll is what plants use to make their own food from sunlight.
’uwu thulh ’uw’ hayus ’ul’ tthu chlorophyll ni’ ha’kwushus kwus kwunnuhwus tthu shtu’aal’usth. But chlorophyll is not the only thing that gives them color.
tthu sts’alha’ ’i’ qux kwus na’luts’tul tthu xut’ustum’ pigments—tskwim, luluts’alus, kwulala’alu ’i’ tthu tth’a tth’uhwum. Leaves have other colorful chemicals called pigments that are red, yellow, orange, and even purple.
qux sts’alha’ ni’ st’i’am’ nuts’tul tthu shtu’aal’usth. Many of the leaves have different colors.
kwulala’alus tthu shewuq. Carrots are orange.
tskwim tthu t’ulum’. Cherries are red.
tth’atth’uhwum’ tthu kepuch. Cabbage can be purple.
tthey’ chlorophyll ’i’ tl’i’ tthu swe’s syaaysth. Chlorophyll has an important job.
ni’ tthu sts’alha’ ni’ sts’uts’ihw tthu tsqway chlorophyll ni’ kwun’el’s tthu xut’ustum’ chemicals. Most leaves have more green chlorophyll than other chemicals.
nilh kwu’elh ’u shus ’uw’ tsqway ’ul’ ni’ wi’wul’. So we only see them as green and not other colors.
’uw’ hay ’ul’ tthu tsqway chlorophyll ni’ le’lum’nuhwut. We just see the green chlorophyll.
wulh yul’ew’ tthu tum’kwe’lus wulh yu xaytl’thut hwu tl’utl’iits’ tthu skweyul. Then summer starts to turn into fall and the days get shorter.
ni’ ’uw’ qe’is ’ul’ tthu sum’shathut kwus tth’ekw’ul’ ’u tthu sts’alha’. Less and less sunlight hits the tree leaves.
sus ’uw’ tsa’ithut kwus xut’eem’ ni’ ’u tthu chlorophyll. So the trees start to make less and less chlorophyll.
’uwu niis tuw’ hwu tsqwayulus tthu sts’alha’. Then the leaves stop looking so green.
yelh sutst lumnuhw wil’ tthu niilh ’uw’ ni’ qux shtu’aal’usth tthu stsa’lha’. And then we are able to see more of the other colors that were there all along.
ni’ tst lumnuhw tthu sts’alha’, kwulala’alus ’i’ tthu tskwim. We see yellow orange and red leaves.
tl’lim’ ’uw’ ’uli’uy’mut They are pretty.
ha’un’ stl’i’ kwun’s lumnuhw tthu ’uy’uy’mut sts’alha’ kwus swi’wul’ ’i’ ni’ kwus wulh hwuw’es niis qtl’um’ ’i’ nilh ’un’s nem’ ’uw’ xlhe’mut kws hwuw’es niis qtl’um. You want to go out and enjoy the pretty leaves while you can.
nilh kwus wulh ye’ tthu sht’aal’usth yelh sus qtl’um tun’ni’ ’u tthu thqet. Because not long after they turn color, they begin to fall of the tree.
ni’ hwu sul’its’ tthu tumuhw ’u tthu qux shtu’aaluts sts’alha’. The ground is full of colorful leaves.
kwus wulh tum’xuy’tl’ ’i’ ni’ tth’qwamthut tthu stsalha’. And then during the winter the leaves decay.
’i’ ni’ tl’uw’ swe’s shhw’uy’s tthu thuthiqut. And they fertilize the forest.
kwus wulh qul’et yu qwi’qw’ul’us ’i’ ni’ tl’e’ wulh xte’um tthu thutiqut ’u tthu sts’allha’ xew’s. Next spring, the tree will start making new leaves.
tsqway kwus hwun’a’ ’i’ nuw’ yu ts’its’usum’ ’ul’ hwu thi. And they will be green and start growing bigger.
mukw’ sil’anum kwus yu qw’uqw’ul’us ’i’ ni’ xte’um tthu thqet ’u tthu sts’alha’ ni’ yu xaytl’thut ’i’ ni’ ’uye’q tthu shtu’aal’uslh ’i’ ni’ qtl’um ’u tthu thqet. And each spring the tree makes new leaves and then each fall the leaves change colors and fall off.
ha’ ni’ qtl’um tthu sts’alha’ ’i’ nilh ni’ hwu shkwu’m’s ’u kwsus wulh tum’xuytl’. When the tree losing its leaves, it can remain strong for the winter.
mukw’ tthu timuls tthu sts’alha’ ni’ nem’ u tthu kwumluhws tthu thqet ni’ huliyun’s The energy goes into keeping the root and trunk alive.
nilh yath ’ul’ nuw’ yu sht’es mukw’ sil’anum. That is the cycle that happens each year.
ni’ tum’kw’e’lus ’i’ ni’ tsts’alha’ tthu thqet. The tree has leaves in the summer.
ha’ ni’ tum’xuytl’ ’i’ ’uwu te’ sts’lha’s tthu thqet. The tree has no leaves in the winter.
nilh kwu’elh sht’es tthu sqwul’qwul’ kwus ’eeye’q tthu shtu’aalusth tthu sts’alha’. And this is the story about why leaves change colors in the fall.
Snowberry is a small shrub (to 2 m [6 ft] tall) that produces small pink to white flowers followed by white berry-like fruits. These fruits stay on the shrub well into the winter. Soapberry occurs in dry to moist areas such as open forests, thickets, and other habitats from low to middle elevations throughout the coast.
