Bluebells Set For Late Arrival

Tue, 06 Apr 2010

English bluebells are set to bloom a little later this year following the coldest winter for 30 years, experts have revealed.

According to the National Trust, the spring flowers usually appear in woodlands by late April or early May as their development depends on warm ground temperatures.

But this year the trust doesn’t expect them to come into bloom until mid-May – around 3 weeks later than usual – due to the prolonged cold snap. The woodland flowers are also more likely to arrive at once in a shorter burst.

In recent years milder winters and earlier springs have led to the flowers appearing as early as April 1 in west Cornwall before spreading like a "Mexican Wave" throughout Britain.

National Trust gardens adviser Ian Wright said: "There is something magical about wandering through a bluebell wood on a spring morning. But this year we are going to have to wait a little longer."

A spokesman for the trust added: "To have any chance of playing catch up we'd need to have a sustained warm and sunny April."

"Bluebells are normally pretty good at making up lost ground but it's going to be touch-and-go this year, so this annual spectacle that symbolises the season is likely to be up to three weeks late."

The National Trust is setting up a Bluebells Watch site to help people find the flowers and record them. The webpage (nationaltrust.org.uk/bluebells) will go live later this week.
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