A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that plants in the Northern Hemisphere use the summer solstice as a cue, based on temperature, to begin preparing for fall, rather than waiting for the warmest days. This finding, led by researchers at the University of British Columbia, challenges existing expectations about how plants will adapt to climate change, indicating they may not be able to fully utilize extended growing seasons.
How the summer solstice may be the cue for plants to brace for fall
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A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that plants in the Northern Hemisphere use the summer solstice as a cue, based on temperature, to begin preparing for fall, rather than waiting for the warmest days. This finding, led by researchers at the University of British Columbia, challenges existing expectations about how plants will adapt to climate change, indicating they may not be able to fully utilize extended growing seasons.
Trending- 1 Earlier work (Polish-led study) suggested solstice acts as a starting gun for European beech trees to produce nuts
- 2 Elizabeth Wolkovitch and Victor Van der Meersch began investigating the question
- 3 Study published last week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- 4 Study used meteorological data across Europe over many years
- 5 Researchers used climate models to test the idea for the distant past and future
- Upends expectations about how plants will respond to shifts in their growing season as Earth’s climate warms
- Trees may not be able to take advantage of lengthened growing seasons in the fall due to climate change
- More investigation needed to deduce how the effect might manifest among various plant species as the planet warms
What: A new study suggests plants use the summer solstice as a temperature-based cue to prepare for fall, potentially impacting their response to climate change.
When: Published last week (referring to the study), around June 21 (summer solstice), over many years (meteorological data), in the distant past and future (climate models).
Where: Northern Hemisphere, Europe, University of British Columbia (UBC), Boston University.
Why: To understand how plants make decisions about their growth cycles and how they might respond to a warming climate. The study aims to upend expectations about plant responses to shifts in growing seasons.
How: Researchers, including Elizabeth Wolkovitch and Victor Van der Meersch, used meteorological data across Europe over many years, focusing solely on temperature correlation with plant growth, and tested their idea with climate models.