2/19/2023 0 Comments Microclimate of riverfront siteWhile global climate change is a rather unfortunate example of how humans can (negatively) affect the climate, it is also possible to conscientiously design landscapes to make them warmer or cooler for our growing purposes. Human design can also affect the climate of any region. For example, while most of the state of Kentucky may be listed as zone 7, there may very well be areas in certain landscapes that could be considered to be adept for growing plants that are best suited for zones 8 or 9. While growing zones or climate zones do offer a good general picture to help you understand where you are at, they simply aren´t detailed enough to allow you to determine what exactly can be grown in a certain area. Similarly, a small valley in a hilly region can significantly change the climate and subsequently what can be grown in that region. If you live in a mountainous region, the windward and leeward facing slopes present two completely different climate zones. In any given growing zone, however, there are hundreds of contextual situations that can affect the exact climate of a region. While some plants require a certain high heat temperature in order to grow and fruit, others have a minimum number of cold hours that are needed if the plant is to grow adequately. The more diverse a system is, the better chance it has to be sustainable and offer us quality yields. The problem is that diversity is what allows for the greatest amount of resiliency in any sort of ecosystem. If the seed packet or nursery tells us that a certain plant is only hardy up to zone 8 and we live in zone 6, most of us will simply avoid that plant. The Myth of Growing Zonesįor some reason or other, most of us steadfastly believe in the certainty of climate zones. By learning how to take advantage of the natural elements around us, however, we can design microclimates which allow us to significantly increase the diversity of plants we can grow in any given region. Those numbers that come on the packets of every seed packet serve to remind us that we´ll be hard pressed to grow peaches in Michigan or lemons in Maine. Most of us have heard of the United States Department of Agriculture climate zones. The climate you live in largely determines what you can grow and when you can grow it.
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