Climate warming is causing wildflowers to flower earlier

Since 1985, a dedicated group of volunteers has been recording the date of first flowering for all 641 plant species found in the Mundy Wildflower Garden. This includes detailed observations made each day of the growing season. Continuous observation of this type has been rarely duplicated elsewhere. These data are now playing a major role in documenting the effect climate change has on plants, and helping to unravel the mystery of why some plants are affected, while others are not.

David Weinstein, Ph.D., a researcher in the Department of Natural Resources at Cornell and a member of Cornell Botanic Gardens Advisory Council, has noted warmer temperatures in the wildflower garden over time, and identified which plants are now flowering much earlier than they had in previous years because of the warming trend in climate. 

Read more in an article written by David Weinstein on our Tumblr blog.