David Wolfe: The Week In Weather

European Wine Grapes Get Unlikely Boost As the U.S. climate warms, scientists have already noted changes in an industry that knows better than any the power of the weather: Farming. David W. Wolfe, a professor of plant ecology at Cornell University in New York, and one of the nation''s foremost experts on the subject, talked with The Daily Green''s news editor, Dan Shapley. This is the first part of a five-part interview, to be published on Fridays in May and June. Wolfe characterized many climate-related changes to agriculture as “anecdotal,” but some changes are closely tied to the lengthening of the growing season and the warming of winter. One notable example is the wine industry, which has received a boost from the changing climate. “European wine grapes,” Wolfe said, “unlike our native Concords and other native grapes, are not that winter-hardy.” These European varietals – popular with wine enthusiasts – are badly damaged whenever temperatures drop below minus-12. In the Northeast, severely cold dips in temperature were more common decades ago, but have become less and less common in the past 30 years, according to statistical analyses. While market forces driven by the demand for wine is also a factor in the growth of the industry, the changing climate has allowed it to grow. The average winter temperature has increased 4.4 degrees in the Northeast – well above the average annual temperature change. That highlights a little-appreciated fact about how the climate is changing. The coldest of the cold temperatures – whether they come in the dead of winter or the dead of night – are not as cold as they used to be. “The key thing with crops, they don''t respond to averages,” Wolfe said. “They respond to critical thresholds.” For wine grapes, the warming climate is a good thing. Next week, we''ll see why it''s not at all a good thing for apples and other fruit trees. This is the first part of a five-part interview with David W. Wolfe, one of four scientists coordinating research into climate-related changes to agriculture as part of the U.S. Global Change Research Program. He is a professor of plant ecology at Cornell University in New York. More Week In Weather Posts Maple Syrup And Fall Foliage At Risk From Climate Change - June 1 David Wolfe: Fewer Fruit And Nut Trees In A Warmer World - May 25 David Wolfe: European Wine Grapes Get Unlikely Boost - May 18 Gavin Schmidt: Wildfires Linked To Global Warming - May 11