Advances in first bloom dates and increased occurrences of yearly second blooms in eastern China since the 1960s: further phenological evidence of climate warming

Confirming the results of previous regional studies on changes in first bloom dates (FBD) in China, this study provides evidence that complements conclusions drawn from studies of phenological changes in other dynamic climate systems in the Northern Hemisphere. Furthermore, increased occurrences of yearly second blooms (YSB) further reinforce results derived from other studies indicating a recent trend of generalized climate warming across China. Additionally, ascertaining changes in FBD and YSB against a recent background not only provides a hitherto poorly formulated autumnal equivalent to the well-studied shifts in FBD, but also formulates both spring and autumn flowering changes in recent years. Data in this study are derived from observations made from 1963 to 2006 by the Chinese Phenological Observation Network (CPON)—a nationwide system of monitoring stations that has made observations of over 173 species from across China since 1963. At each site, the mean value of each species’ annual deviation and spring mean surface temperatures were calculated. For each species, years and locations were also recorded for species in which second blooms (YSB) occurred. Of the 46 FBD samples, 31 showed advances from the mean, blooming earlier over the course of the study period. Notably, although only 8 of the 46 FBD samples showed significance levels of 0.1 or better, the average FBD did advance by 5.3 days. After the 1980s, the frequency of YSB occurrence remained steady, declining a little from the peak in the 1980s, but still exhibiting occurrences far more than were observed earlier. The data from this study clearly indicate that both the phenological advance of FBD in spring and the increased occurrence of YSB are consistent with climate warming.