‘Season creep’ does a number on plants, allergy sufferers
Early warmth brings a jump-start to spring
@usatodayweather USA TODAY
Despite this past weekend’s chill, a freakishly warm February across much of the U.S. has caused flowers, trees and plants to bloom weeks early and threatens to bring a whopper of an allergy season.
How early? In a large chunk of the U.S. from Texas to New York, spring arrived two to three weeks earlier than normal, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Phenology Network. In Washington, D.C., spring was 22 days early.
The peak bloom of the iconic cherry blossoms in the nation’s capital could be the earliest ever, perhaps as early as March 14-17, the National Park Service says. The record earliest peak bloom, when 70% of the blossoms are open, was on March 15, 1990.
In Memphis, many of the city’s trees and plants are about a month ahead of schedule, Rick Pudwell, director of horticulture at the Memphis Botanic Garden, said recently.
In New Jersey, the warmth has caused tree and shrub buds to start swelling early. Any extended cold, however, still could affect early-spring flowering trees, says Bill Zipse, regional forester for the state forest service.
Changes in the timing of spring can affect human health, bringing early-season disease carriers such as ticks and mosquitoes, and an earlier, longer and more vigorous pollen season, the National Phenology Network warned.
Indeed, for allergy sufferers, the springlike warmth should trigger symptoms sooner than normal. “Much of the Southeast through the East Coast is looking to have increased levels of pollen this year due to the mild end of winter,” AccuWeather meteorologist Alan Reppert says.
This year’s unusual warmth is part of long-term trend due to man-made global warming, the National Phenology Network said on its website: “We’ve known for over a decade now that climate change is variably advancing the onset of spring across the United States.”
The phenomenon has been documented around the world, reports the communication group Climate Nexus, and is informally dubbed “season creep.”