Discover Autumn Magic: Top 19 Fun Facts About Fall You Never Knew!

1. Apple-Tastic Dental Delights

An apple a day keeps the dentist at bay, and a wide array to keep the taste buds at play: Americans munch on over 19 pounds of apples each year, making it their second favorite fruit, and the official pick of six states like Minnesota where Croix Farm Orchard thrives. Spanning 14 acres of crunchy delight, it offers varieties like Honey Crisp, Gala, and McIntosh that not only taste amazing but also help clean and brighten your pearly whites!
Source => croixfarm.com

2. Daylight Saving Drama

Once upon a time, in a land where fuel was scarce, a noble experiment was launched to marry the sun and the clock in perpetual happy hour, and behold, a bright idea was stumbled upon: In 1974, during the oil crisis, the United States implemented a trial period of year-round daylight saving time, lasting until 1975, aiming to increase evening daylight for recreation and reduce energy usage, but ultimately succumbing to safety concerns and dwindling public support.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

Discover the fascinating world of the temperate forest, where bears, birds, and moss thrive amidst ever-changing seasons! 🐻🌳🍁

=> Fun Facts about The-Temperate-Forest

3. The Science of Fall Fashion

As autumn rolls in and leaves begin their annual fashion show, strutting their stuff in fabulous hues of yellow, orange, red, and purple, don't be fooled into thinking they're simply being "frost"-forward trendsetters: The real secret behind these seasonal wardrobe changes lies in the breakdown of chlorophyll as the trees' food factories shut down for their winter hiatus, allowing other pigments like carotenoids and anthocyanins to take center stage, with a little help from light intensity and cool-but-not-freezing temperatures.
Source => portal.ct.gov

4. Jack-o'-Lanterns: Turnip Terror Origins

Before pumpkins had the guts to show their scary faces, a sneaky turnip stole the limelight and fooled the Devil himself: The Jack-o'-Lantern tradition we know today began with carving creepy expressions into humble turnips, inspired by the tale of Stingy Jack who trapped the Devil and wandered the Earth with only a coal-lit carved turnip to ward off evil spirits, evolving into the pumpkin-carving extravaganza embraced by Irish immigrants in America.
Source => blogs.loc.gov

5. Squirrel Nut-Etiquette

They say squirrels are nature's secret agents, always plotting nutty schemes beneath the trees, but there's some method to their madness: up to 74% of the nuts these furry tacticians bury go unretrieved, contributing to oak forest regeneration and genetic diversity, all while they skillfully employ deceptive tactics like creating false caches to outwit every nut-thieving nemesis lurking in the shadows.
Source => ssec.si.edu

6. Turkey's Patriotic Ambitions

Despite being too gobble-itious to lay claim to America's national perch, turkeys have put themselves forward as a more morally-upstanding candidate than their bald eagle counterpart: In a letter to his daughter, Benjamin Franklin praised the turkey for its courage and respectability while critiquing the less virtuous character of the bald eagle – all part of the colorful backstory this fowl enjoys in the tale of Thanksgiving's beloved centerpiece.
Source => fi.edu

7. Mooncakes: Autumn Amore

When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore - but when it's stuffed with lotus, sesame seeds, duck eggs or dried fruits, that's the Mid-Autumn Festival: An important occasion in Chinese and Vietnamese communities worldwide, celebrated on the Harvest Moon closest to the September equinox, with delicious mooncakes and lunar admiration.
Source => timeanddate.com

8. Cornucopias: The Keto Connection

Before cornucopias went on the Keto diet and shed their wicker selves: the horn of plenty, a large horn-shaped container, was a symbol of abundance and nourishment in classical antiquity, associated with Greek and Roman deities involved in harvests, prosperity, and spiritual abundance. Nowadays, it's taken on a lighter, basket form, rocking the Thanksgiving table and inspiring body art as a symbol of fertility, fortune, and abundance.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

9. Oktoberfest's Royal Romance

From royal "I do's" to swigging brews: Oktoberfest's heritage traces back to the nuptial celebration of Crown Prince Ludwig I and Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen on October 12, 1810. Munich's citizens frolicked outside the city gates, sowing the seeds for today's iconic brew-fest. Now, a mere six Munich breweries are authorized to serve beer at the event, tantalizing taste buds with their authentic Märzen beer — Prost to that!
Source => walburgrestaurant.net

10. Butterflies' Tree Party Sleepovers

Who needs hotels when you can have a butterfly sleepover in a tree? Monarch butterflies play it smart on their fall migration by having nightly tree parties: They cluster together in roost sites, typically in pine, fir, and cedar trees with thick canopies, to stay warm and regulate temperature and humidity. These slumber fest locations are used annually, with the butterflies traveling up to 100 miles a day along flyways before gathering on peninsulas, patiently waiting for gentle breezes to guide them across open water.
Source => fs.usda.gov

11. Cuffing Season: Love in Flannel

As the leaves fall and pumpkin spice lattes make their annual comeback, "cuffing season" wraps its cozy arms around the world of dating, trading in flings for flannels and casual dates for cozy cuddles: First coined in 2010, cuffing season refers to the autumn and winter months when singles are more likely to seek serious, committed relationships due to social comparison, media influences, and the cold, dark months triggering loneliness or even depression.
Source => theguardian.com

12. Pumpkin Empire: U.S. Supremacy

When life gives you pumpkins, make pumpkin spice lattes – or in the case of the United States, a whole pumpkin empire: Six American states harvested a colossal 1 billion pounds of pumpkins in 2021, with Illinois alone bringing in a monstrous 652 million pounds, and California, Indiana, Texas, Michigan and Virginia not far behind with 100-181 million pounds each.
Source => ers.usda.gov

13. Brown Bears' Fat-Burning Hibernation

Who knew that brown bears have the ultimate fat-burning secret, perfect for those long winter months when they cosy up and Netflix and sleep: While they hibernate, these magnificent creatures experience a drop in temperature, pulse rate, and respiration, allowing their bodies to use the fat they've stored during the summer to provide the energy needed to survive the colder season.
Source => nps.gov

14. Corn Maze: Record-Breaking Adventure

Navigating this monstrous maize masterpiece is surely not a "corny" experience and may even put you on the "stalks" list of the world record books: Cool Patch Pumpkins in Dixon, California boasts the world's largest corn maze, sprawling over 40 acres with more than 3 million corn stalks! With this year's farming-themed design, visitors can attempt to solve a hidden image while braving their way through, taking anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours. Interestingly, the land is multi-purposeful - providing year-round crop cultivation and transforming into the marvelous corn maze just a few weeks before its grand opening.
Source => fox40.com

15. Cider Apple Makeover

Apple-y Ever After: While Cinderella was all about scoring that glass slipper, the real magic happens during the fall when her booze-loving cousins, cider apples, get their moment in the spotlight. The cider harvest process involves assessing the orchard, determining the right time to harvest, milling and pressing the apples within a few hours, followed by weeks of fermentation and long-term maturation to produce the perfect drink. Turns out, they're intentionally grown to harvest later in autumn than regular eating-apples, giving them a higher sugar content for a fuller flavor – so raise a glass of Sandford Orchards cider and toast to the fairy tale that is the cider harvest season!
Source => sandfordorchards.co.uk

16. New England's Highway of Foliage

Leaf it to New England to turn the "highway" into a full-fledged "my way or the highway" experience for fall fanatics: Some of the most breathtaking foliage drives in the nation can be found here, with highlights like New Hampshire's Kancamagus Highway boasting scenic overlooks, Vermont's idyllic Route 100 offering winding, billboard-free tranquility, and Maine's Acadia National Park featuring a 27-mile Park Loop Road filled with picturesque photo ops.
Source => townandcountrymag.com

17. Great Salt Lake: Bird Buffet

You might say the Great Salt Lake in Utah is the avian equivalent of a Vegas buffet: In the fall, millions of birds stop by for a feast of brine flies and brine shrimp, drawing in the likes of 500,000 Wilson's phalaropes and 1.5 million eared grebes. This mouthwatering pit stop accounts for a third of their North American populations and plays a crucial role in fueling their journey to warmer, southern climes.
Source => audubon.org

18. Pumpkin Show: Gourd Glory

Who says size doesn't matter in the pumpkin world? The citizens of Circleville, Ohio, would beg to differ, as they gather each year to show off their titanic orange beauties armed with tape measures and envious gazes: The awe-inspiring Circleville Pumpkin Show hosted this year's largest pumpkin, grown by Bob and Jo Liggett, weighing a jaw-dropping 1,837.5 pounds, undoubtedly making every other pumpkin green with envy, drawing around 100,000 visitors annually to witness these colossal gourds and participate in the festivities.
Source => 10tv.com

19. Fall Foliage Map: Technicolor Tracker

Leaf it to technology to take our fall foliage game up a notch: The Smoky Mountains' DMO has developed an interactive online tool called the Fall Foliage Map, which allows nature enthusiasts to track the most radiant autumnal changes across the United States. This nifty map predicts peak leaf-viewing times based on weather data, making it the ultimate guide for fall road trip plans—we're talking "glorious technicolor" on demand. Although climate change makes exact predictions tougher, this map's rooted in solid science, ensuring all you happy tree friends can make the most of this falling for color season!
Source => travelpulse.com