Planting early tomatoes and some dead seaweed – What to do with that?

Essays by Eric Worrall

Tasmanian academics Edward Doddridge presented his evidence that the end of the climate is upon us – earlier planting time and some dead seaweed.

What does growing tomatoes show us about climate change?

Published: November 22, 2022 6:04 am AEDT
Edward Doddridge

Associate Research in Physical Oceanography, University of Tasmania

There is a gardening legend in my hometown that has been passed down for generations: never plant tomatoes before Show Day, in Tasmania, which is the fourth Saturday in October. If you are reckless enough to plant them earlier, your tomato seedlings will suffer during the cold nights and fail to grow.

But will this kind of seasonal intelligence still work as the climate changes? We often talk about climate change on a large scale – how much the average global surface temperature will increase.

…

Change is everywhere

Climate change really means change – both on a large scale and on a small scale. From extreme weather to a constantly changing ecosystem to when you can grow tomatoes.

For gardeners, this means that accepted wisdom is no more. In Tasmania you can now safely grow tomatoes 18 days earlier than in 1900. That’s because the minimum temperature in October is now about 1oC warmer than in 1910.

…

Hotter water also kills almost all Tasmania’s giant kelp, and facilitate the southward migration of warm water fish.

…

Read more: https://theconversation.com/what-planting-tomatoes-shows-us-about-climate-change-193830

Honestly, the climate crisis is more interesting than before this big reveal. It’s like sitting for two hours watching a horror show, only to discover the monster behind closed doors is a well-behaved poodle. “You have to spend trillions of dollars on this crisis, or our early tomato crop will continue to be in surplus!”

Stay tuned for more Doddridge revelations about why we must mortgage our children’s futures to combat the climate crisis.