SAF Wednesday E-Brief - 05/23/2007 (Plain Text Version)
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Climate Change Shifts Growing Zones
Palm trees in New York? Could be. Some experts are now saying that climate change “has already nudged up large swaths of the country by one or more plant-hardiness zones, (creating) a longer growing season and a more robust selection,” according to a recent story in The New York Times. "There is clear evidence that the living world is responding to this change already," said David W. Wolfe, a professor of plant ecology at Cornell University, who spoke at a recent symposium at the New York Botanical Garden called "Gardening in a Changing Climate." The shift could have implications on how –- and what -- consumers plant in their gardens and yards. The National Wildlife Federation is predicting that by the end of the century, the climate will no longer be favorable for the official state tree or flower in 28 states. Warmer temperatures could also make toxic plants, such as poison ivy, more dangerous and increase pollen production. Tara Dillard, a landscape designer and garden writer in Atlanta, told the Times she now “steers clients away from longtime favorites.” "I'm writing a column about rhododendrons right now," Dillard said. "And I think my conclusion is going to have to be not to plant rhododendrons. We have heated out of the rhododendron zone." In December, the National Arbor Day Foundation released an updated version of the United States Department of Agriculture's Hardiness Zone Map, which is used by gardeners to determine which plants can survive in their yards. Using data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Arbor Day map indicates that many bands of the country are a full zone warmer, and a few spots are two zones warmer, than they were in 1990, when the map was last updated, according to the Times. The Agriculture Department also is in the process of redoing the map. -- Mary Westbrook
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