00:00A very early and warm start to spring has brought the leaves out way ahead of schedule in the central
00:05plains and parts of the west.
00:07But for others, spring isn't flipping on like a switch.
00:11It's stuttering, leading to delayed leaf outs.
00:14Surges of warmth and abrupt chill downs have led to stripes where things are way ahead of schedule,
00:19like areas in the western U.S. and the plains racing weeks ahead of schedule.
00:25Others are stuck in neutral, but in the southeast, spring surged early and then cold snapped it back.
00:31Now some areas have actually run late, and as spring pushes north again, the surge of early leaf out will
00:37expand into more of the midwest.
00:39Now, when it comes to blooms, they lag behind the leaves.
00:43The spring bloom index from the National Phenology Network shows most areas are still ahead of schedule,
00:49but that February chill set parts of Florida to coastal South Carolina behind.
00:52This isn't a smooth seasonal shift. It's a stop-and-go rollout, and if the temperature swings continue, so will
00:58the timing of spring.
00:59Watch the map because spring isn't arriving all at once.
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