Prickly Rose (Rosa acicularis) in Bloom WAY Out of Season

Observation by Daisy Huang:

These roses usually bloom in early summer (June). This one appeared right after the first frost, when most of the other roses are gone to hips.

Comments from Elia Epchook: (9-19-2018)

The 2nd photo shows a possibility why there are late bloomers--the amount of vegetation per square foot keeps a lot of warm air. I bet the area where this flower was found is much warmer than the air where there are open areas where wind can penetrate. If that's not the case... then the amount of carbon in the atmosphere is giving them a longer life well into the fall. If this is the case, then expect much of the flowering plants to remain alive well into winter. Another form of bioremediation--only this remediates the carbon in the air.

Comments from LEO Editors:

This observation has been added to the Late Bloomers project, which is collecting observations of flowers blooming at unusual times, to better understand Arctic and boreal plant responses to warmer temperatures and longer growing seasons.

Temperatures in Fairbanks have, on average, increased since 1949, as shown in the "Total Change in Mean Seasonal and Annual Temperature" figure below. The 2017-2018 temperature summary for Fairbanks shows the months in which there were departures from normal temperatures over the past year, which are most noticeable in the winter. Historical mean temperature departures also show prominent winter and spring warming trends in the Fairbanks area, although temperatures have increased in all seasons. Erica Lujan