Weather Tidbits: The Smell of Leaves

This edition of Weather Tidbits discusses what causes the smell of leaves. This is a scent you have likely smelled when there are a lot of leaves on the ground, or perhaps you may have picked up a clump of leaves and had a close-up smell. It’s a very distinct smell, fresh and earth-like. The scent is caused by the decay of the leaves and organic compounds. This releases gases into the air. The smell can easily dominate the air in fall due to prime surrounding and atmospheric conditions in fall. In spring, there are competing scents like flowers that could overtake the smell. Additionally, dry air in the fall allows humans to more easily detect organic molecule scents than in humid air.