One of the ways to assess the impacts of climate change on plants is analysing their long-term phenological data. We studied phenological records of 18 common tree species and their 8 phenological phases, spanning 65 years (1946-2010) and covering the area of the Czech Republic. For each species and phenophase, we assessed the changes in its annual means (for detecting shifts in the timing of the event) and standard deviations (for detecting changes in duration of the phenophases). The prevailing pattern across tree species was that since around the year 1976, there has been a consistent advancement of the onset of spring phenophases (leaf unfolding and flowering) and subsequent acceleration of fruit ripening, and a delay of autumn phenophases (leaf colouring and leaf falling). The most considerable shifts in the timing of spring phenophases were displayed by early-successional short-lived tree species. The most pronounced temporal shifts were found for the beginning of seed ripening in conifers with an advancement in this phenophase of up to 2.2 days year⁻¹ in Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris). With regards to the change in duration of the phenophases, no consistent patterns were revealed. The growing season has extended on average by 23.8 days during the last 35 years. The most considerable prolongation was found in Pedunculate Oak (Quercus robur): 31.6 days (1976-2010). Extended growing season lengths do have the potential to increase growth and seed productivity, but unequal shifts among species might alter competitive relationships within ecosystems.

Department of Zoology Faculty of Science Palacký University tř 17 listopadu 50 Olomouc 771 46 Czech Republic

See more in PubMed

Tree Physiol. 1998 Dec;18(12):811-816 PubMed

J Exp Bot. 2010 Jun;61(11):2853-62 PubMed

Int J Biometeorol. 2001 Nov;45(4):203-7 PubMed

Tree Physiol. 1995 Nov;15(11):697-704 PubMed

Nature. 2002 Mar 28;416(6879):389-95 PubMed

Nature. 2003 Jan 2;421(6918):57-60 PubMed

Trends Ecol Evol. 1999 Apr;14(4):146-150 PubMed

J R Soc Interface. 2009 Oct 6;6(39):951-7 PubMed

Proc Biol Sci. 2001 Feb 7;268(1464):289-94 PubMed

Science. 2002 May 31;296(5573):1689-91 PubMed

Science. 2010 Mar 19;327(5972):1461-2 PubMed

Proc Biol Sci. 2005 Dec 22;272(1581):2561-9 PubMed

Tree Physiol. 2005 Jan;25(1):109-14 PubMed