Journey North Tulip Garden and Climate Study

Tulip Test Gardens

Spring 2009	Posted Thursdays: Feb. 5, 12, 19, 26, Mar. 5, 12, 19, 29, Apr. 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, May 7, and 14
	May 14, 2009 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 huge experiment!
	May 7, 2009 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.
	April 30, 2009 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.
	April 16, 2009 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 can spy.
	April 9, 2009 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!
	April 2, 2009 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.
	March 26, 2009 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!
	March 12, 2009 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.
	March 5, 2009 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: Rob Greg
CRutherford Memorial School	February 26, 2009 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 line.
	February 19, 2009 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 emerged. Photo: Bickmore
	February 12, 2009 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.
	February 5, 2009 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.
	Welcome and Orientation 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 maps >>.