Tulip Garden Update: March 7, 2003
Today's Report Includes:
Today’s
Data Reflects Temperature Drop
Add another log to the fire! Imagine this coming out of the mouths of many
this past week. From the Northwest down to the tip of Texas and up to Maine
people were putting on extra warm clothes as temperatures dropped more than
9 degrees below average. How do these colder than average temperatures affect
you and your tulip bulbs?
|
|
|
Today's Tulip Map |
|
One Year Ago, Mar. 1,
2002 |
Take a look at this week’s map and compare to one
year ago (data below and maps on Web). Study the map of temperatures.
Challenge Question #7:
“How many statements can you make about the patterns you see from
these maps? List them.”
(To respond to this question, please follow the instructions
below.)
Gardeners Share the News
Rumor of Red in Baton Rouge
|
Credit Gayle Kloewer |
3rd Graders at Cedarcrest-Southmooor Elementary in Baton Rouge, LA reported,
“There was a rumor going down the hall that there was red in the tulip
garden. Our first thought was that it was just our soil thermometer. We
decided to go and check. It was raining very hard, but we still wanted to
check. Soaking wet in the rain stood three tulips. It was so exciting.”
Outfoxing the Squirrels
Oak Grove High School in Hattiesburg, MS reported, “Our school is
near the woods, so our tulips are close to the dumpster so the prowling
cats will keep the squirrels away from our bulbs!”
Snow Plow Troubles
The tulip garden of 2nd Graders from Moharimet Elementary in Madbury,
NH may have met its match this year with a snow plow! They last reported
on 2/10, “Oh, No! The snow plow plowed up our Journey North Tulip
Garden! We've had a lot of snow and it has been hard to clear, but we
were so upset that our garden was ruined in spite of our sign explaining
what it was! We are anxiously waiting for the snow to melt so we can assess
the damage.”
Let’s hope that snowplow didn’t ruin the entire experiment.
Stay tuned...
Spring's Journey NORTH?
According to students at 48 Journey North gardens, where tulips are now
growing, spring is well on its way. But which way is spring going? Maybe
we should change our name!
As you look where tulips have begun to grow, you may be surprised. How would
you answer this question?
Challenge Question #8:
"Does spring truly move northward? Using today's data, describe
the pattern you see. In which direction(s) is spring moving, and why
you think this is so?"
(To respond to this question, please follow the instructions
below.)
Popping Out in Pueblo, Colorado!
|
|
|
|
Ms. Allen's class is
ecstatic about their tulips! |
Kathleen Allen's class tulips have emerged! This year the news is especially
timely because it sets in swing our Altitude Experiment (see
below). Here is her news:
Well we've really been sweating it out but finally some of our tulips
have emerged! We spied one tiny red sprout on Thursday and expected
to be able to report emergence but we got about 1 inch of snow in the
early hours of Friday and about 3 inches Saturday evening and night.
By 2:00 this afternoon (Monday, March 3) the strong Colorado sun had
melted all the snow and in the soft, moist soil and we counted 7 tulips!
We were thrilled with the snow. We are in the sixth, and so far most
severe, year of drought. Perhaps you remember reading and hearing about
the devastating fires the Colorado mountains and foothills suffered
last summer. We continue to be on strict water restrictions. Small mountain
towns not far from Pueblo even ran out of drinking water late last summer.
These days nothing seems to get us as excited as snow in the forecast!
Although, as always, we watered our tulip bed through the winter this
is the latest Journey North tulips have ever emerged. We are thinking
that the soil was so lacking in moisture even watering couldn't make
things "normal" and the development of the tulips was slowed.
Just for fun we went back and looked at the history of when Journey
North tulips emerged in Pueblo.
Year |
Date
Tulips EMERGED |
2003 |
March 3 |
2002 |
Feb. 25 |
2001 |
Feb. 23 |
2000 |
eaten by a gopher! |
1999 |
Feb. 23 |
1998 |
Feb. 19 |
1997 |
Feb. 27 |
We are eager to hear from our "Higher" neighbors. We do know
the mountains have received lots of snow in the last week...yeah!
Regards, Kathleen Allen and students at South Park Elementary
Challenge Question #9:
“Analyze the tulip EMERGED dates for the Pueblo garden. Find the
mean (average), median and range of the dates.”
(To respond to this question, please follow the instructions
below.)
Altitude Experiment: How Quickly
Does Spring Climb Mountains?
|
Aspen Elementary: will
they be next? When do you predict?
Elevation 7,907 ft. |
With the Pueblo tulips emerging
we can now test Teale's statement that spring "ascends mountainsides
at the rate of about a hundred feet a day," and predict the arrival
of spring in the mountains. Last month we invited you along to test Teal's
theory but now the test begins. Pull out your worksheets and calculate and
predict when spring will arrive in Aspen, Fraser and Crested Butte.
Watch the Tulips EMERGE reports and fill in the dates as each school reports
their gardens emerging. Look at the factors that are involved and be the
scientist. Does spring ascend at a rate of about a hundred feet a day?
The Days, They are A-changing:
Learning to be Observers
|
|
Credit Gayle Kloewer |
How do you and the world around you change as your tulips begin to grow
and flower? You might be surprised to learn that with each day that passes
your world changes ever so slightly. Using your eyes, your ears, and even
your sense of touch you can observe and investigate spring as it advances
through your hometown.
Brainstorm what evidence a keen observer could look for. Go out and discover
the small things that make for seasonal change in and out of the tulip garden.
And then set up questions to help you make sense of the changes you notice.
Try This!
- Create a graph showing daylength as time passes this spring. Add
your observations to it on the proper dates and formulate a theory that
supports what you see.
- Was there a time when it suddenly warmed up enough for you to wear
shorts for a few days? What other phenomena did you observe during that
time? How are these things related?
- Compare and contrast the growth rates of your tulips with any of
the other observations you made (ex. number of birds you counted, high
daytime temperatures).
- Organize your observations into a timeline and evaluate what you see.
Teale’s Test: Discussion
of Challenge Question #5 “As a scientist, what
information would you need to set up a better elevation test to measure
spring's ascension up the mountain slope? What would your experiment look
like?”
This is a question that requires some research about mountains and climate.
When Teale predicted spring to ascend mountainsides at the rate of 100 feet
a day he was probably thinking about a particular experimental plan. What
would the ideal test look like?
- First, if you planted tulips on the same side of the same mountain
(facing one direction) your results would be more meaningful. This would
eliminate the variation from one mountain to another and from one side
to another as the sun warms each part of the mountain differently.
- Second, at each site the tulips would be planted exactly the same,
according to the Journey North planting instructions.
Did you think of other ways to set up the best experiment to test Teale’s
theory?
How to Respond to Today's Challenge
Questions:
IMPORTANT: Answer only ONE question in each
e-mail message.
1. Address an e-mail message to: jn-challenge-tulip@learner.org
2. In the Subject Line of your message write: Challenge
Question #7 (or #8, or #9)
3. In the body of EACH message, give your answer to ONE of the questions
above.
The Next Tulip Garden Update Will Be Posted on March
14, 2003.
Copyright 2003 Journey
North. All Rights Reserved.
Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form
|