Read ‘em：宮崎で季節外れの桜開花

A Somei Yoshino cherry tree used by the Miyazaki Local Meteorological Observatory to track Japan’s spring sakura season appears to be a tad on the confused side, sprouting blossoms on the opposite side of the calendar.

As of Oct. 18, there were about 30 flowers on the tree on the observatory grounds in the city of Miyazaki. Officials suspect the off-season blossoms are due to the impact of Typhoon Nanmadol, which hit the region in mid-September. Strong winds stripped the tree of its leaves, which contain a substance that stops flower buds from blooming. Without this compound reaching the buds, they were likely free to flower, staff said.

Normally, the observatory declares a start to the local cherry blossom season when six flowers bloom on its sample tree. However, there will be no sakura announcement this time, as it is an “irregular phenomenon” in the same category as other plants flowering out of season or animals using non-seasonal calls.

“With only this many flowers blooming, we don’t believe they’ll have a negative impact on next spring’s blossoms,” an observatory representative said.

　宮崎市の宮崎地方気象台の敷地内で、桜の開花発表の目安となるソメイヨシノの標準木に、季節外れの花が咲いている。気象台は9月中旬に九州を直撃した台風14号の影響とみている。

　18日時点で敷地内の標準木で30輪ほどの花が開いている。気象台は、台風14号による強風で大量に葉が吹き飛ばされ、葉から出ていた開花を抑える成分が花芽に行き渡らず、開花したとみている。

　通常、標準木で6輪開けば桜の開花を発表するが、植物が季節外れの花を咲かせたり、動物が違う時期に初鳴きしたりする「不時現象」のため、開花宣言はしない。気象台の担当者は「これくらいの数であれば春の開花に支障はないだろう」と話している。