Fall Color: Trees Of The Eastern Forests

A visual guide to some 45 trees found in the Eastern forests, Fall Color opens with a fairly scientific overview of how deciduous trees acquire their vibrant color, followed by individual segments on trees from the maple, ash, walnut, hickory, oak, birch, elm, and cherry families, among others. While often lovely to look at, Fall Color has some problems: first, when describing a scientific process like the chemical changes leaves undergo during the changing of the seasons, simple shots of tree leaves are not the best visual aid; second, the trees are described in purely naturalist terms (Aristotle would have liked this video a lot) limiting the audience to serious tree-lovers; third, the woman who narrates the program sounds as if she's on the verge of breaking out into sparkling laughter at any moment--given the subject matter, this approach is both silly and annoying; and fourth, although the trees are numbered on the included information sheet, they are not numbered on the video, thereby reducing the program's potential reference value. Scriptwriter C. Ritchie Bell's book Fall Color and Woodland Harvests is a much better presentation of the information. Eastern libraries may want to consider (and should definitely acquire the book), but for others this is not a necessary purchase. (Available from: Laurel Hill Press, P.O. Box 16516, Chapel Hill, NC 27516-6516; (919) 942-9533.)