HOLLAND, Ohio — This year has been filled with extreme and drastic weather, from record-breaking heat to long-lasting drought. All these changes in the weather have left trees and plants a bit confused and stressed about what season it truly is. WTOL 11 decided to take a trip over to Nature’s Corner to explore why some flowers are blooming … in November.
The drought this past summer and fall has not made it easy on trees and plants across the state of Ohio. If you add the above-average temperatures we have already seen in November, things may look a little different come springtime.
"The flowers that are starting to pop up now, if you see any, those buds are not going to reopen in the spring," said Jenny Amstutz, who is the store manager at Nature’s Corner.
"It’s not normal for it to bloom this late in the season. There are spring bloomers now that will not reopen and bloom again in the spring, but it’s not going to harm the tree at all."
Amstutz said don’t panic if you see several buds blooming.
"With the cold weather coming, that flower you see now will not last, but it’s not going to confuse a tree so much that come spring, you won’t have your beautiful lilac or your beautiful dogwood," she said.
If you have felt the back-and-forth whiplash between hot and cold weather, then the plants have surely felt the extreme changes as well.
"I think plants overall, this year, have been a bit stressed. I know with the heat and with the dryness, if they didn’t get any additional watering from you, then they went through a bit of stress, especially young plants," Amstutz said. "You know we’re always stressing to people, if you’re planting a new tree or a new shrub, make sure it gets plenty of deep water."
With this week’s cold snap and harsh weather ahead, Amstutz recommends keeping an eye on the weather and your plants. If it doesn’t rain, just give them a late drink. When the ground finally freezes, it should freeze moist, not dry, which could be the worst thing for plants to endure.