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<H1>Warm weather tricks plants into prematurely blooming</H1>
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<H2>Mon, Jan 8, 2007</H2>
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<DT><IMG height=199 src="http://www.aikenstandard.com/temporaryimages/bp96341.jpg" width=300>
<DD>A Southside yard springs with color from the red of the flowering quince, in full bloom. </DD></DL>
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<P>By KRYSTIN MERRIWEATHER </P>
<P>Staff writer </P>
<P>As a result of recent warm winter temperatures, it not only feels like spring, it is beginning to look like it. Some plants in the area have already begun their blooming process as early as January. </P>
<P>In addition to sighted cherry blossoms, Dr. Harry Shealy noticed native azaleas in his backyard and a few plants downtown that are in bloom as well. </P>
<P>A USC Aiken professor of biology, Shealy said with plants having such an early bloom, this could affect their bloom in the spring. </P>
<P>"Plants respond to normal seasonal change," Shealy said. "Around here there are two things that can cause a plant to react ... light period and temperature." </P>
<P>Since the weather has been unseasonably warm, the plants are just reacting to their conditions. If cold or freezing temperatures roll around, it will affect the plant's growth and bloom in the spring. </P>
<P>"It doesn't kill the plant, but certainly it doesn't do it any good," Shealy said. </P>
<P>Another factor that will affect early bloomers is their dependence upon a pollinator. For instance, if a plant blooms in February and it depends on an insect pollinator that does not emerge until April, it will be affected, Shealy explained. </P>
<P>"There are so many variables in nature," he said. </P>
<P>Although overnight rain brought in cooler temperatures for today, freezing weather is nowhere in the forecast for this week, according to Meteorologist Mike Proud with the National Weather Service. </P>
<P>"Skies should clear out a bit during late morning, early afternoon," he said. </P>
<P>Proud said today's high will be in the upper 50s and kind of breezy with winds 10 to 20 miles per hour. The rest of the week looks pretty dry and will be warmer, he said. </P>
<P>The normal high for January is about 55 degrees, Proud said, so the recent warm temperatures are above average for this time of year. </P>
<P>"The next two days we are sitting about normal," he said. </P>
<P>As far as freezing winter weather being over for this season, Proud said it is hard to tell. </P>
<P><I>Contact Krystin Merriweather at kmerriweather@aikenstandard.com</I></P></DIV>
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<DIV><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#004000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="12">Laurie Davies Adams<BR>Executive Director<BR>Coevolution Institute<BR>423 Washington St. 5th<BR>San Francisco, CA 94111<BR>415 362 1137<BR><A title=http://www.coevolution.org/ href="http://www.coevolution.org/">http://www.coevolution.org/</A></FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#004000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="12"><BR><A title=http://www.pollinator.org/ href="http://www.pollinator.org/">http://www.pollinator.org/</A></FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#004000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="12"><BR><A title=http://www.nappc.org/ href="http://www.nappc.org/">http://www.nappc.org/</A></FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#004000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="12"><BR><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#000000 size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="10">Bee Ready for National Pollinator Week: June 24-30, 2007. Contact us <BR>for more information at www.pollinator.org </FONT><FONT lang=0 face=Arial color=#004000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" PTSIZE="12"><BR><BR><B><I>Our future flies on the wings of pollinators.</B></I></FONT></DIV></BODY></HTML>