Shorter days and cooler nights start a precise clockwork of physical and chemical interactions within leaf cells bringing forests ablaze with color as they prepare for winter dormancy. In response to certain environmental stimuli, leaf pigments begin to reveal themselves in the leaves of Georgia’s deciduous trees. The amount of pigments in trees depends on the tree species, soil composition, and other environmental components.

Over 1.5 billion metric tons of carbon is sequestered on Georgia timberland according to 2019 Forest Inventory & Analysis (FIA) data, provided by the U.S. Forest Service. This includes 23.2 million acres on federal, state/local, and private property. It accounts for carbon in aboveground and belowground live and dead biomass, aboveground and belowground understory vegetation, coarse woody debris, soil, and leaf litter. This estimate excludes timberland primarily consisting of exotic species and non-stocked stands (previously forested land that has yet to be replanted or produce substantial natural vegetation).

Georgia’s Forest Stewardship Program utilizes the unprecedented cooperation of resource professionals from both the public and private sector with backgrounds in forestry, wildlife biology, soil science, and recreation management. Working together, they produce detailed and comprehensive management plans called Forest Stewardship Plans for landowners enrolled in the program.