Deciduous forests flush new leaves in a brief synchronized spring wave
After winter dormancy, temperate deciduous trees often leaf out within a narrow window timed to warming soils, longer days, and the fading risk of hard frost.
Too early and freezes kill soft tissue; too late and the growing season shortens. Understory spring ephemerals race to flower in the brief light before the canopy closes.
Leaf phenology is a forest calendar you can watch from space. That green-up wave is millions of buds keeping the same spring appointment.
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