Britain’s bluebells have bloomed unusually early this year, driven by a wetter spring and mild conditions.
Ample rainfall, combined with a warm start to the season, has created ideal growing conditions for the wildflowers.
Temperature records have been broken, with the hottest day since 1946 recorded in the first half of April, reaching 26.6C on April 8 at Kew Gardens, London.
Across southern England, residents have reported bluebells sprouting in their gardens up to two weeks earlier than usual – helped by a lack of frosty mornings.
Owner of Hole Park Gardens Edward Barham described Kent’s display this year as ‘magnificent, probably one of the best of recent years’.
Speaking to the BBC, he said: ‘This is certainly the earliest we have seen the bluebells come into flower, at least two weeks ahead of schedule, brought on by the very warm weather around Easter Time.’
Similarly, colourful exhibits have been spotted across the seven-acres at the nearby Great Comp Garden in Kent.
The garden curator Williams Dyson told a national newspaper: ‘We are at least four weeks ahead of ourselves this year.
‘The snowdrops were all in bloom ahead of time, followed by the daffodils waking up earlier than expected. And our magnificent display of magnolias, which we are rightfully famous for, have been blooming for the last couple of weeks.’
Other flowers – including tulips, cherry blossoms and rhododendrons – have also bloomed prematurely across Britain. This is helped by the sun moving higher in the sky as plants respond to increased sunlight.
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has noticed a distinct difference in the timing of blooming flowers this year.
Tim Upson, director of gardens and horticulture at the RHS, said the cherry blossom at Wisley, Surrey, had already finished blooming a few weeks early – while their tulips were nearly at the end of their prime.
Meanwhile, David Knott, curator at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, noted plants including rhododendrons and magnolias were now flowering up to two weeks earlier.
Tulips at Hampton Court Palace in East Molesey, Surrey, have also bloomed slightly ahead of their usual schedule.
Research from the University of Cambridge suggests many plants are now flowering up to a month earlier, raising concerns for wildlife and the ecosystem – as well as for farmers and gardeners.
This comes as rising temperatures shift the natural plant cycles. This can leave species that sync up their migration or hibernation without flowers – known as ecological mismatch.
Scientists warn that spring temperatures are rising faster in all four nations of the UK than in other seasons, with averages increasing by 1.8C since 1970.
