40 palettes

Tree Color Palette

Press the button for one tree palette: three colors from light to dark, then the bark and the shadow.

Tree Color Palette

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Canopy at noon: green over brownLime sunlit leaves, green leaves, forest green shaded leaves, brown bark, dark brown shadow.#A4DC32 · #36993F · #204B2D · #70482A · #39231A

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Spring leaf 10

Blossom at dusk: pink over brown Pale pink blossom, pink shaded blossom, dusty blue sky, brown bark, midnight blue shadow.
Blossom branch: pink over brown Pale pink blossom, lime new leaves, pink buds, brown bark, charcoal shadow.
Blossom on blue: chartreuse over brown White blossom, chartreuse leaves, sky blue sky, brown bark, dark brown shadow.
First green haze: lime over gray Pale lime haze, lime buds, sky blue sky, gray bark, charcoal shadow.
New leaves: lime over tan Pale lime buds, lime new leaves, green older leaves, tan bark, dark olive shadow.
Orchard in bloom: avocado over tan White blossom, pale pink buds, avocado leaves, tan bark, dark olive shadow.
Petal fall: pink over brown Pale pink fallen petals, pink blossom, dusty green grass, brown bark, dark green shadow.
Red-edged buds: red over gray Pale lime young leaves, red leaf edges, maroon shaded edges, gray bark, charcoal shadow.
Spring rain: chartreuse over dark brown Pale blue raindrops, chartreuse leaves, emerald green wet leaves, dark brown bark, navy shadow.
Weeping branches: chartreuse over tan Pale lime tips, chartreuse hanging leaves, olive inner leaves, tan bark, dark olive shadow.

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Summer shade 10

Apples in the leaves: red over brown Chartreuse sunlit leaves, red apples, forest green leaves, brown bark, dark green shadow.
Canopy at noon: green over brown Lime sunlit leaves, green leaves, forest green shaded leaves, brown bark, dark brown shadow.
Climbing tree: green over tan Chartreuse sunlit leaves, sky blue sky, green leaves, tan bark, dark brown shadow.
Dappled path: avocado over brown Butter yellow sun spots, lime leaves, avocado shaded leaves, brown bark, dark olive shadow.
Deep woods: forest green over dark brown Dusty green far trees, forest green leaves, dark green undergrowth, dark brown bark, black shadow.
Fir shade: forest green over dark brown Gray mist, forest green needles, dark teal far firs, dark brown bark, midnight blue shadow.
Moss and trunk: avocado over dark brown Chartreuse sunlit moss, avocado moss, dark olive ferns, dark brown bark, black shadow.
Night woods: dark teal over charcoal Dusty blue moonlit leaves, dark teal leaves, navy sky, charcoal bark, black shadow.
Picnic shade: green over brown Cream blanket, green leaves, dusty green grass, brown bark, dark green shadow.
Sun shafts: dark green over brown Butter yellow light, avocado lit needles, dark green needles, brown bark, black shadow.

Autumn 10

Aspen grove: yellow over gray Butter yellow sunlit leaves, yellow leaves, gold shaded leaves, gray bark, charcoal shadow.
Birch in gold: gold over tan Yellow leaves, sky blue sky, gold shaded leaves, tan bark, dark brown shadow.
Cottonwood row: yellow over tan Pale blue sky, yellow leaves, mustard shaded leaves, tan bark, dark olive shadow.
Dogwood in fall: red over gray Peach sky, red leaves, plum shaded leaves, gray bark, charcoal shadow.
Hickory crown: gold over brown Amber sunlit leaves, gold leaves, mustard shaded leaves, brown bark, dark brown shadow.
Maple in orange: orange over gray Amber sunlit leaves, orange leaves, rust shaded leaves, gray bark, dark brown shadow.
Maple in red: scarlet over brown Orange leaf tips, scarlet leaves, maroon shaded leaves, brown bark, charcoal shadow.
Oak in red: red over dark brown Gold last yellow, red leaves, maroon shaded leaves, dark brown bark, black shadow.
Sassafras mix: orange over brown Yellow leaves, orange leaves, rust shaded leaves, brown bark, dark green shadow.
Sweetgum crown: scarlet over brown Gold leaves, scarlet leaves, plum leaves, brown bark, midnight blue shadow.

Bark and winter 10

Bare branches: gray over dark brown Pale blue sky, silver fine twigs, gray branches, dark brown bark, charcoal shadow.
Fog in the wood: gray over charcoal White fog, silver far trunks, gray near trunks, charcoal bark, black shadow.
Frosted twigs: dusty blue over gray White frost, pale gray sky, dusty blue twigs, gray bark, midnight blue shadow.
Lichen patches: khaki over brown Seafoam green lichen, khaki moss, mustard lichen, brown bark, dark brown shadow.
Moss at the roots: avocado over brown Chartreuse moss tips, khaki dry grass, avocado moss, brown bark, dark brown shadow.
Peeling bark: rust over brown Cream inner bark, sand curls, rust fresh bark, brown bark, dark brown shadow.
Snow-laden fir: emerald green over brown White snow, emerald green needles, dark green inner boughs, brown bark, midnight blue shadow.
Snowy boughs: forest green over brown White snow, pale blue snow shade, forest green needles, brown bark, navy shadow.
Tree rings: tan over dark brown Sand cut wood, tan rings, rust center, dark brown bark, black shadow.
Winter dusk: plum over dark brown Peach sky, pink low sky, plum branches, dark brown bark, black shadow.

How this list was compiled: Own work, written for Draw This Next on 2026-10-08: palettes of five colors taken from trees through the year, sorted by season (spring leaf, summer shade, autumn, bark and winter). Every palette, name, color word, hex code and part is our own choice; none is sampled from a photograph. How a strip is ordered: what is on or behind the tree (leaves, blossom, snow, sky) from the lightest color to the darkest, then the bark, then the shadow. Our own tests, not a standard: the shadow is the darkest color of its strip and the colors before the bark get darker at each step (WCAG relative luminance, https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG21/Understanding/contrast-minimum.html); a Summer shade strip holds a green or a dark teal; no two colors of a palette are closer than 8 in CIE Lab; no two palettes share four codes. Facts in the page copy, checked on 2026-10-08 against English Wikipedia, Autumn leaf color, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autumn_leaf_color: a green leaf is green because of chlorophyll; carotenoids give yellow and orange, are in the leaves all year and are usually masked by the green, and they tint the leaves of alder, ash, aspen, birch, black cherry, cottonwood, hickories, maple, sassafras, sycamore and yellow poplar; the reds and purples come from anthocyanins, which are produced toward the end of summer and appear vivid in cherry trees, dogwoods, maples, oaks, persimmons, sourwood, sweetgums and tupelos, and which combine with the carotenoids into deeper oranges, reds and bronzes; anthocyanins also temporarily color the edges of some very young leaves as they unfold in early spring. Every tree named on the Autumn list is on one of those two lists: a tree from the first is given yellows, golds and oranges, a tree from the second reds and purples, with a gold or an orange where the two mix. Bark and shadow colors are our own choice, and no strip claims the bark color of a species. Color names are plain English words with no paint maker, pencil brand or color-matching system, and one word is one code everywhere on this list. Checked on 2026-10-08: every code is #RRGGBB, each color word fits the hue and lightness of its code, no palette, name or line repeats, and no palette is on another palette list of this site or of its sister sites. The hex codes are for a screen; with paint or pencils, take the nearest color. Licence: own work

How it works

Tree color palettes for one year of a tree, in four groups: Spring leaf, Summer shade, Autumn, and Bark and winter.

Read the full guide

Why the leaves change color

Chlorophyll is what makes a green leaf green. The yellows and oranges of autumn are carotenoids, in the leaf all year and masked by the green until it fades. Reds and purples are anthocyanins, made toward the end of summer. So Aspen grove and Hickory crown are yellows and golds, and Maple in red, Oak in red and Dogwood in fall are reds.

A dark forest color palette

Choose Summer shade in the menu under the button. Deep woods, Fir shade, Moss and trunk, Sun shafts and Night woods are its darkest strips: deep greens and dark teal, each ending in a black or midnight blue shadow.

Questions and answers

What colors do I need to paint a tree?

Three for the leaves (one sunlit, one mid, one shaded), one for the bark and a darker one for the shadow. Canopy at noon is that set: lime, green, forest green, brown and dark brown.

What color is tree bark?

On these strips it is brown, dark brown, tan, gray or charcoal. Those are our own choices for a picture, and no strip claims the bark color of a species.

Why are some spring leaves red at the edges?

Anthocyanins, the pigments behind red autumn leaves, also color the edges of some very young leaves as they unfold in early spring. Red-edged buds is built on that: pale lime leaves with red edges.

Which palette suits a winter tree?

Bark and winter holds bare branches, frost, snow on evergreen boughs, lichen and a cut stump. Bare branches is silver twigs and gray branches under a pale blue sky, with dark brown bark.