EARLY WARMTH HAS SPRING BUSTING OUT ALL OVER

The flora has spring fever, and tree and plant experts say it isn't unhealthy.

Blooms and blossoms on trees and plants are early this year, said Rocky Hayes, urban forester with the Missouri Conservation Department. "We're a couple of weeks earlier than normal," he said.

With Thursday's high temperature more than 20 degrees greater than March 9 last year, things that go "bloom" had to respond, said Paul Schnare of Sunny Hill Gardens and Florist.

Crabapple, cherry and Bradford pear trees are all showing spring colors now, which Hayes said is usual since they always bloom early.

Some shrubs in bloom include tulip magnolias, quince and forsythia. The quince are rounded, woody shrubs that generally are pinkish red, while forsythias are yellow. These are all hardy shrubs, although not native to the area, Schnare said.

But this burst of color could have a down side: If cold temperatures sneak back into the season, leaves and buds will take it on the chin, Hayes said.

Temperatures in the low 20s and teens could cause damage to the growing cells in leaves and buds, he said. When these turn black, that is the evidence of a killer freeze.

"Plants have a built-in antifreeze system," Hayes said. "They get tricked when warm weather comes." Lower temperatures cause the cell walls in leaves and buds to rupture since freezing causes them to expand, the forester said.

The temperature limits for early bloomers is 27 or 28 degrees, Hayes said.

Covering plants with blankets or tarps when cold weather is forecast does help since they serve to modify the temperature a few degrees upward, he said.

Oaks and other shade trees fare better, since they are native to the region. Ornamental trees suffer more since, when people purchase them from a garden nursery, they usually have spent the first part of their lives in a more southern climate, Hayes said.

"Mature trees are more acclimatized than the ornamental trees," he said.

Fruit trees would like some cold. "The fruit people like it, because they get a bigger and better quality in their orchards with a little cold," Hayes said.

Schnare has seen more people coming for seeds and plants at Sunny Hill.

"If people know what they're doing, they're buying pansies now," Schnare said. "They can take the cold if it comes."

Gardeners are also putting in their "cold crops" of lettuce, spinach, peas and cabbage earlier. Some want to plant tomatoes, but Schnare said they need to be cautious. Frost comes at 38 degrees.

"Frost will kill tomatoes," he said.

Since the National Weather Service in Paducah, Ky., is predicting above average temperatures here for March, cold might not be a problem.

However, lower than normal precipitation could take the area back toward drought conditions that caused damage last summer, Hayes said.

The level of moisture in the soil is a good 8-to-12 inches below the surface, he said. But this could change in the next two or three weeks.