Late spring frost delays tree spring phenology by reducing photosynthetic productivity

Jinmei Wang, Hao Hua, Jing Guo, Xu Huang, Xin Zhang, Yuchuan Yang, Danying Wang, Xiali Guo, Rui Zhang, Nicholas G. Smith, Sergio Rossi, Josep Peñuelas, Philippe Ciais, Chaoyang Wu () and Lei Chen ()
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Jinmei Wang: Sichuan University
Hao Hua: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jing Guo: Sichuan University
Xu Huang: Sichuan University
Xin Zhang: Sichuan University
Yuchuan Yang: Sichuan University
Danying Wang: Sichuan University
Xiali Guo: Guangxi University
Rui Zhang: Zhejiang A&F University
Nicholas G. Smith: Texas Tech University
Sergio Rossi: Université du Québec à Chicoutimi
Josep Peñuelas: National Research Council (CSIC)
Philippe Ciais: Université Paris-Saclay
Chaoyang Wu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Lei Chen: Sichuan University

Nature Climate Change, 2025, vol. 15, issue 2, 201-209

Abstract: Abstract Under climate warming, earlier spring phenology has heightened the risk of late spring frost (LSF) damage. However, the intricate interplay among LSF, spring phenology and photosynthetic carbon uptake remains poorly understood. Using 286,000 ground phenological records involving 870 tree species and remote-sensing data across the Northern Hemisphere, we show that LSF occurrence in a given year reduces photosynthetic productivity by 13.6%, resulting in a delay in spring phenology by ~7.0 days in the subsequent year. Our experimental evidence, along with simulations using modified process-based phenology models, further supports this finding. This frost-induced delay in spring phenology subsequently leads to a decrease in photosynthetic productivity during the next year following an LSF event. Therefore, it is essential to integrate this frost-induced delay in spring phenology into current Earth system models to ensure accurate predictions of the impacts of climate extremes on terrestrial carbon cycling under future climate change.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41558-024-02205-w

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