He visits Western Sydney University, where he finds researchers hard at work finding out which plants are likely to adapt to a hotter, drier Australia.
Professor David Ellsworth and Dr Linda Beaumont are both chief investigators of the ‘Which Plant Where?’ research program.
David explains that the effects of a warmer climate are magnified in cities, where impervious building surfaces like concrete, asphalt and roof tiles absorb heat and radiate it out in the event, creating what is known as the “urban heat island effect”.
As cities become more dense, greenery and street trees are more important than ever, because greenery provides shade and cooling, which are invaluable in heat waves and for mitigating urban heat islands.
The ‘Which Plant Where?’ program is growing plants in climate-controlled glasshouses, where they moderate moisture and temperature, simulating drought and heatwave conditions and seeing how the plants respond. The researchers are looking to find out the “permanent wilting point”; the point of soil moisture from which the plant can no longer recover.
“Our modelling is 5 weeks of drought, and then 6 days of heat,” David says. The Bureau of Meteorology classifies a heatwaves as "three days or more of maximum and minimum temperatures that are unusual for the location”, but climate modelling suggests 6-day heatwaves will become “common, and longer in duration”.
Linda’s work is to look at the models of “where the climate is heading in urban areas” and see “which plants will be still be useful”. So far more than 7000 species have been identified from these models, including Wilga (Gijera parviflora) – a medium-sized, evergreen tree common in the Wagga Wagga & Mildura areas.
For home gardeners, there are already important lessons here. To choose plants that will survive a drier and hotter climate into the future, make choices from regions already experiencing these conditions.
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