Professor Lee, Sang-Don Publishes Research on Shifts in Time of Flowering on the Korean Peninsula in the World-renowned
- 작성처
- Date2023.06.19
- 16166
Professor Lee, Sang-Don Publishes Research on Shifts in Time of Flowering on the Korean Peninsula in the World-renowned Journal New Phytologist
An unprecedented century-long phenological record exists for South Korea.
Korean Forsythia blooms 23 days earlier than it did a century ago; for Yoshino cherry the figure is 21 days and 53 days for Japanese apricot.
Jointly with overseas research teams, Professor Lee Sang-Don of the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering released the results of research into nature’s response to climate change based on records of observations on flowering time in South Korea over the past 100 years. The results of his study, “Consistent linear phenological shifts across a century of observations in South Korea,” were published in New Phytologist, a top 3.2 percent internationally recognized journal in the field of phytology.
The Korean Meteorological Agency (KMA) has been collecting data since 1922 on the flowering time of trees and shrubs in laboratory gardens at 74 weather stations distributed across the country. This globally unprecedented century-long record of phenological activities is considered important data for studies on global climate change.
The research team consisting of Professor Lee and researchers from the U.K. and the U.S. analyzed the KMA data to demonstrate the sensitivity with which plants have been responding to climate change. The results show that the spring flowering time for the seven plant species studied (including Yoshino cherry and Korean forsythia) at weather stations across South Korea has become gradually earlier in response to record high temperatures. Compared with 100 years ago, Korean forsythia blooms approximately 23 days earlier, Yoshino cherry does so 21 days earlier, and Japanese apricot flowers about 53 days sooner than it once did.
The research team discovered that different species are responding to global warming at different paces. For example, acacia trees flower roughly three days earlier for every 1℃ rise in average spring temperature while Japanese apricots blossom nearly six days earlier per degree. These different responses impact respective species’ vulnerability to frost, insect attacks, and summer drought. Other species that depend on the plants, such as insects and birds, may not be able to keep up with this rapid adaptation, potentially causing a decline in their ability to find the food and habitats they require in spring. In addition, plants may be flowering more than one month earlier, but at a certain point they will encounter critical situations such as the dry soil and shorter daylight hours of late winter.
“We have been discussing how climate has been affecting plants over the past decades, but we do not have another 100 years to resolve the issues related to climate change,” said Professor Lee. “This study will help find ways for the ecosystem to more flexibly adapt to changes in flowering due to genetics and the environment.”
The research was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea and the Ministry of Environment for the project “ICT-based environmental effects evaluation and ecosystem technology development.”