Well, look around you.
My Bradford pear tree is just about ready to pop out in bloom. And if you have Bradford pears, I bet your trees are beginning to show signs of popping out in bloom, too.
Spring Bustin' Out All Over
Daffodils are beginning to wake up and break the ground with their spring growth. Star magnolia, fragrant honeysuckle and forsythia are all beginning to break buds. The warm mid-70-degree weather we've had lately is gearing nature up for spring.
Seed catalogs are coming in the mail and garden supply stores, and the big one (you know the store I'm referring to) is now stocked with garden supplies and plants.
Yep. This warm weather is teasing all of us and is even tempting us to plant something. It has us and even nature fooled.
But It's Not Spring Yet
The problem is: it's not spring yet. It's still winter.
Plants need so many chill hours to meet their dormancy requirements. The number of needed chill hours depends on the plant.
Below-40-degree temperatures allow the plants to meet these chill requirements. Once they're satisfied, then warm weather triggers them to come out of dormancy.
A Normal Phenomenon
That's what we've been seeing lately. This is a normal physiological phenomenon. There ain't nothin' you can do about it because there's no way you're going to hold them back.
There's a saying in south Georgia that goes, "Don't plant until the pecan leaves are as big as mouse ears." |
The weather is playing a trick on us and nature right now. We're all fooled except for the pecan tree.
There's a saying in south Georgia that goes, "Don't plant until the pecan leaves are as big as mouse ears." That's because the pecan tree is one of the last trees to pop its new buds in the spring.
And that makes pecan trees smart!
