5*, 12, 19*, 26, Mar. 5*, 12, 19*, 29, Apr. 2*, 9, 16*, 23, 30*, May
7, and 14*
Tulips have emerged in Palmer, Alaska! And in ND, gardens have bloomed
that were covered with a foot of snow this spring! Visit a garden
in WI planted under an unusual mural. Study the season in maps; revisit
the question, “How does spring move across the continent?”
Then compare and contrast many years of Journey North garden maps.
And a final thank you to all the gardeners who contributed to this
Students in the northern-most regions are just now reporting spring
has sprung in their gardens. Snowbanks are melting and temperatures
are warming. Students in Palmer, AK, dug a sample from their garden
to see if the bulbs were still there. See what they found. Will the
bulbs emerge by next week? How much snow and ice is there in May in
North America? NOAA maps help you discover where it is.
This is the time of year the maps are filling up with red blooming
gardens. Students are taking the time now to analyze their experimental
plots, and summarize their work. We take a close look at tulip blossoms
and learn that they really do move. The word to learn is phototropism.
Watch a flower move as the sun changes position in the sky. And compare
last year’s map with today’s map. How are they different?
April 23, 2009
Tulip gardens are blooming all across the Northern Hemisphere this
week. Many students in colder regions welcome tulips emerging, too.
Investigate an unusual tulip and learn what you call it. Does it fit
the botany of a tulip? Learn more about the tulip family and its relatives.
What does a normal tulip look like? And share the stories and pictures
of proud tulip gardeners across the region.
Tulip gardens are emerging across the Northern Hemisphere, but spring
is fickle and snow is forecast. Mirachimi, NB, shares pictures of
tulips emerging right through the snow. A good sign for a hardy plant!
An Albany, OR, teacher shares a good plan for recording garden happenings.
Go out on a phenology hike to really see what signs of spring you
Spring is arriving across the continent in fits and starts! April
snowstorm brings some damage to tulips already up, but doesn’t
seem to squash the enthusiasm the students bring to the garden project.
Another 45 degree latitude garden emerged this week. One more to go.
Take an artistic journey inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe. Express
the beauty of a tulip flower with a few simple materials and time
to explore. And send in those questions for the tulip expert!
A cold front in the middle of the continent has slowed the reports
of blooming tulips this week. Plants in Denver hit by the snow are
showing signs of stress. But spring is in the air for reporters who
are out observing subtle signs. Polish your math skills analyzing
11 years of data from the same garden in VA. And visit a middle school
tulip garden experiment recorded in VoiceThread.
The spring equinox has arrived, and our tulip map is proof that plants
are starting to grow across the continent. Visit a tulip flower. Look
carefully. Can you see all the parts? Start seeing other flowers as
spring brings new blossoms to your hometown. And take time to use
your senses outside in the garden. Create a poem!
Learn about a new invention to help you predict the coming of spring,
Latitude Shoes. Then travel the 45th parallel wearing them. What will
you see? Over 200 gardens have emerged so far. Scientists observe
and record. Are you? There is a chart to help you. And, are some of
your tulips growing differently than you expected? Explore some of
the troubles that can occur in the tulip garden.
Huge March snowstorm on the east coast dropped record snow amounts.
How will this affect the tulips that have emerged? Try some experiments
this week with water, sugar, and plant leaves. Put them into the freezer
to help you understand what happens inside plants. Re-visit the gardens
along the 45th parallel. One of them has emerged. Use new information
to help you predict which one will be next. Photo:
Temperatures are up and down all across the map as spring is on the
way. Are you watching the garden? Tiny little tulips emerging give
great cause for excitement as they grow into big plants. No blooms
yet on the map. Study the green wave of spring. Compare new gardens
with the temperature map. Follow the lines each week. Learn about
the wonderful variety of garden locations we have along the 45th latitude
Study today’s map to answer this: Does there seem to be a pattern
to the emerging gardens? Grab a crayon and find out. What factors
influence the Italian garden at 40.8N, compared to North American
gardens? Did you notice the spring-like temperatures last week? Did
they influence your garden? And find out which California garden has
It’s not hard to see the green on this week’s tulip garden
map. Why are tulips emerging in these locations? Let’s begin
to look at weather and climate. Are they different? Who reports the
weather across North America? Explore and track weather and climate
on a grand scale and in your own backyard. And let’s look at
why tulip shoots emerge with a red color.
The tulip map is showing some green! Study this week’s map and
then compare it to last year’s map. Predict which of 3 CA gardens
will emerge first. They are all within 90 miles of each other. The
weather made national news last week. Were your temperatures higher,
lower, or normal? What will that mean for your garden? And, an interesting
experiment to think about.
Get ready to track spring's arrival in the Northern Hemisphere!
Watch for weekly TULIP GARDEN UPDATES. They will be posted here every
Thursday, from February to May. (See schedule above.) Find out how
to report your tulips emerging and blooming on real-time migration