Tulip Study Sheds Light
Materials: See Microclimate lessons, left.
this activity in concert with or after students have explored microclimates
in one of these lessons:
As students explore microclimates in your schoolyard, they'll begin to
consider how climatic factors such as rainfall and temperatures affect
when tulip plants emerge and bloom. (Tulips are particularly sensitive
to temperature in the 3 to 4 weeks before blooming.) You can then help
your class consider how our warming global climate could affect plant
life cycles and, in turn, the animals that depend on them.
As you discuss
the concept of microclimates, ask these questions:
do you think different schoolyard microclimates will influence tulip
plant growth, emergence, and bloom times?
climatic factors do you think have the greatest impact on the timing
of these life cycle stages?
several schoolyard sites that appear to have different microclimates.
should have compared temperatures, moisture, and other factors in several
sites. (If not, do so now.)
the fall, plant one or more tulip bulbs in each location.
the spring, gather data in each location. Always do this at
the same time of day. For instance, take daily temperature readings.
If practical, measure air and soil temperatures. Also use a probe or
your hands to feel and describe soil moisture. Students might also choose
to compare other climate factors, such as wind.
It may be easiest to measure the daily high temperature, which
typically occurs around 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.
represent and compare data.
For instance, students can make graphs to compare each factor (e.g.,
average weekly high temperatures) for each site. They can also overlay
the dates of tulip blooms at each site.
Connections: Discussion and Journaling Questions
- At which
site did tulips bloom the earliest? The latest?
- What factors
seemed to affect bloom times?
- What questions
did this study raise?
- How can
we use this information to explain how a warming global climate might
affect plant life cycles.
- How do
we think a warming climate might affect animals that depend on plants
(for instance, pollinators)?
find information to help you answer the last two questions on this page
of our Climate Connections reading. >>