ILLUSTRATED FLORA OF EAST TEXAS - Brit - Botanical Research ...
ILLUSTRATED FLORA OF EAST TEXAS - Brit - Botanical Research ...
ILLUSTRATED FLORA OF EAST TEXAS - Brit - Botanical Research ...
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CLIMATE <strong>OF</strong> <strong>EAST</strong> <strong>TEXAS</strong>/INTRODUCTION 67<br />
Mean annual temperature in East Texas varies from nearly 70° F (21° C) in the south<br />
(Bexar, DeWitt, and Wilson counties) to about 64° F (18° C) in the north (along the Red River)<br />
(Griffiths & Orton 1968) (Fig. 35), but temperatures of 0° F (-18° C) and 110° F (43° C) are<br />
occasionally seen in winter and summer respectively, with even more extreme readings rarely<br />
observed. The highest East Texas temperature reading, 118° F (48° C), was recorded for<br />
McKinney in Collin County in 1936 (Bomar 1995). Some parts of East Texas and adjacent<br />
areas have recently experienced their hottest temperatures ever—an example is the all-time<br />
record of 112° F (44.4° C) set in College Station on September 4, 2000 (National Weather<br />
Service 2000). Other September 2000 records include Austin at 112° F, San Antonio at 111° F<br />
(43.8° C), and Houston at 109° F (42.7° C) (National Weather Service 2000, 2003c). Dallas-<br />
Fort Worth, at the western margin of the area, apparently has the East Texas record for<br />
number of days with a temperature of 100° F (38° C) or above, experiencing 69 such days<br />
in the heat wave of 1980 (D. Finfrock, pers. comm.). The coldest temperatures recorded in<br />
East Texas include -13° F (-25° C) (Paris) and -8° F (-22° C) (Tyler), both in the unusually<br />
cold winter of 1899 (Bomar 1995). In fact, virtually all of East Texas, even the southernmost<br />
parts, has experienced temperatures as low as 5° F (-15° C)—for example, during the historic<br />
cold waves of 1889 and 1989 (Bomar 1995). The mean length of the frost-free period in the<br />
area is given in Figure 36.<br />
Native vegetation has therefore evolved with, and is adapted to, such recurrent extremes.<br />
A good example of the different effects of extreme weather on native versus introduced plants<br />
occurred in December of 1983. During that prolonged, intense cold spell, introduced landscape<br />
plants in the northwestern parts of East Texas suffered extensive damage, while most<br />
native plants were not adversely affected. However, even native plants can be damaged under<br />
exceptional circumstances. An example is the phenomenon known as false spring. As discussed<br />
by Stahle (1990) and Stahle and Cleaveland (1995), a false spring episode includes<br />
FIG.36/MEAN LENGTH (IN DAYS) <strong>OF</strong> FROST-FREE PERIOD FOR <strong>TEXAS</strong> (ADAPTED FROM GRIFFITHS & ORTON [1968] BY HATCH ET AL.[1990]).