Global Warning

Lest there be any doubt, here's my old-fashioned quince in Washington DC, blooming away on New Year's Day ... and that's in addition to my winter-blooming jasmine, my Koreanspice Viburnum, and my forsythia, which has been in flower since some time in December.  These plants are all blooming at least one, if not two months early.  So tell me there's no global warming??? How can anyone deny what's happening?

And, in case you missed the news story over the holidays, The National Arbor Day Foundation has released a new 2006 map of US Hardiness Zones.  It shows that many parts of the United States are now a full zone warmer, and parts of some states are now two zones warmer than they were in 1990.  For example, Washington DC is now rated zone 7-8 instead of 6-7; and most of Michigan's lower peninsula is now in zone 6 instead of zone 5.  Arbor Day spokesman Woody Nelson told the Associated Press that southern magnolias can  now be planted in the warmer parts of Michigan, and Arizona cypress can be planted in New Jersey.

The new map is based on temperature data collected over the past 15 years by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA. Hardiness zones are based on the average annual low temperatures using 10 degree increments. 

At the Arbor Day website, you can type in your zip code and find out exactly what zone you're in. You can also find out which trees are most appropriate for your area. 

The warmer temperatures in many parts of the US this winter have been blamed in part on  El Nino, a warm current in the Pacific Ocean that affects atmospheric conditions.  However, others say it's all part and parcel of the global warming trend that's due to the release of carbon dioxide and other pollutants that trap heat in the earth's atmosphere.

While many gardeners are surely eager to plant tender species they couldn't in the past, I'm not sure I'd be very happy to see crape myrtles blooming in Massachusetts.