Rutter Urban Forestry
  • Home
  • Services
  • Our Team
  • Mulch
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Biothermic
  • Employment
  • New Page

Spring Temperature Fluctuations

4/22/2012

 
Do you remember how excited you were when we had those few days of really warm weather over the march break?  We all felt that spring was coming super early this year and we were going to skip that phase of the spring where it's too warm to ski but too cold to spend time in the back yard.  I will admit to secretly thinking that global warming isn't such a bad thing after all.

Also at that time all over the media, experts were speculating on what repeated ultra early springs could mean for our region.  We could see more insects, more forest fires even more cases skin cancer et cetera.  When it comes to trees, I was thinking about how the spring can be so climatically volatile and an early spring can easily mean severe damage to tender new leaves.

What has been happening over the past week and likely will continue for a few more days is that warm daytime temperatures are helping the trees to expand their leaves.  At night however, we've been experiencing some cold night time temperatures that are freezing the new tissue and causing damage.

Trees will build new leaves late in the summer and keep them in tight buds that are held on the tree over the winter.  In the spring, after the soil and roots thaw, trees send water up to the buds where the pre formed leaves are filled and expanded.  During this process you can tap into that flow on sugar maple trees and make maple syrup.  Usually bud break coincides with the last of the really cold nights where temperatures rarely go below zero and if they do it's only by a couple degrees.

Right now, because of the ultra spring boost, trees are working about two weeks ahead of the weather.  Leaves are out of the buds on many species and filling with water.  The freezing temperatures are turning the water in the leaves and twigs to ice and that expansion is causing plant cells to rupture and burst. 

The net effect of this spring will take a few weeks to reveal itself.  Many tree species will fare just fine but many others, particularly those whose range barely extends this far north, will experience some difficulties.  These problems can range from light leaf scorching to wholesale leaf loss and branch death.

Two springs ago across the Prairies, green ash trees experienced very acute decline from this very phenomenon.

Should these fluctuations in spring weather remain a trend caused by global warming, we will certainly have some challenges to deal with down the road.

    Vince Rutter

    Vince has been writing for the Chonicle-Journal for several years. His articles appear every month.

    Search Blog

    Archives

    July 2016
    October 2013
    September 2013
    June 2013
    October 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    January 2012

    RSS Feed

Picture
2017 Rutter Urban Forestry - Thunder Bay's Leading Tree Care Company - Free Estimates - (807) 627-6201 or vince@rutterurbanforestry.ca

  • Home
  • Services
  • Our Team
  • Mulch
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Biothermic
  • Employment
  • New Page