The Morning News from Wilmington, Delaware • Page 11

DELMARVA CROSSROADS Oct. 31. 1984 Significant climate changes can make history DELAWARE WEATHER by Frank T. Bodurtha POES A CHANGE in climate change history? Maybe. A direct connection between climate and history has not been proved, but weather definitely was a significant influence on some great historical events.

In the words of Al Smith, let's look at the record. By climate we mean the total experience of weather at any place over some specific period of time, normally 30 years. Climate is not constant, however, large swings in climate have occurred during recorded history for a variety of reasons. Scientists reconstruct past climates by several methods, including the use of: Instrumental data: Instrument records are helpful for only the last 300 to 400 years, so they dont tell us much of the story. (Galileo invented the thermometer around 1590.

Atmospheric pressure readings go back only to 1654, 11 years after the invention of the barometer by Torricelli. Rainfall may have been measured in the first century A.D., but the longest series of rainfall records is for Kew, England, going back to 1697.) Historical records, such as ships' logs, diaries, plus government and private estate records. Indirect evidence, including tree rings, glacier movements and archaeological evidence. Aided by clues from these sources, the following general climatic trends have been deciphered: Rapid warming occurred after the last Ice Age; peak temperatures were reached from 5000 B.C. to 3000 B.C.

Since then, there has been a cooling and drying trend, but with wide climatic swings. Warmth was established around 300-400 A.D., reaching a peak in the Medieval Warm Epoch around 1000-1400. Cooling then set in; temperatures dipped lowest during the Little Ice Age, 1400-1800. During this era, virtually no sun-spots were observed for a prolonged period, possibly indicating the predominance of variable solar activity in causing climatic change. Europe was warmer during the 1830s or so, but cooler toward the end of the 1800s.

Thereafter, rapid warming occurred in this century up to about 1950; then, fast cooling commenced in the Northern Hemisphere. Very recently, however, the Earth may have begun to warm up again. But, what about the effect of these climatic ups-and-downs on history? Early in this century, Ellsworth Huntington of Yale University was the best-known of the climatic determinists," who believed that climatic factors have been among the most important influences on the development of civilizations. He described an ideal climate as one where the temperature rarely falls below 38 degrees Fahrenheit or rises above 64 degrees, such as in London. According to Huntington in his book, "Civilization and Climate," cities and temple-pyramids are lost now in dense tropical rain forests.

Also, the spread of malaria perhaps accelerated the decline. These brief anecdotes tend to support the concept that climate has affected the march of history. Be that as it may, some important historical events clearly did hinge on weather. Here are some examples: North Sea storms helped to shatter the Spanish Armada in the summer and autumn of 1588 and thereby influenced English history. In the spring of 1788 a drought struck France and led to a poor grain harvest and subsequent famine in 1789, the year of the French Revolution.

Also, an intense hailstorm in July 1788 caused additional agricultural damage in parts of France. The famine was not the primary cause of the revolution, but it did contribute to the timing and violence of the upheaval Adverse moist weather induced the Irish potato famine, beginning in 1846. The potato blight fungus thrives when temperature and humidity stay above 50 degrees and 90 percent for days. One million people died from the famine over a period of six years; emigration began, and the population of Ireland has never since approached the 1845 level. The severe Russian winter of 1941-42 halted the progress of Hitler's Russian campaign and, consequently, may have speeded the demise of Germany's Third Reich.

Weather, too, creeps into litera the general tendency during periods of high civilization has apparently been toward cool, but not extremely cold, winters and toward summers that, though warm or even hot for several months, are generally varied by storms or at least by winds that produce frequent changes of temperature; a relatively high degree of storminess and a relatively long duration of the season of storms have apparently been characteristic of the places where civilization has risen to high levels both in the past and at present The drying up of pastures used by the nomads in central Asia set off a chain reaction of barbarian tribes and unsettled peoples migrating westward into Europe; ultimately they undermined the Roman Empire during the Dark Ages (about 476-1000 A Also, favorable climate from 600-400 B.C. apparently helped the economy of Greece and stimulated the Greeks to a high degree of physical and mental energy during the Golden Age of Greece. The fall of Greece may have been influenced by a decrease in rainfall that created an environment favorable for malarial mosquitoes and decreased the supply of food. The Mayan civilization of Yucatan and Guatemala had its high period abut 300-800 A.D. These skillful people built great cities and pyramids, invented an elaborate calendar, and developed the art of writing.

But that remarkable civilization declined, apparently in part because of the shift to a moist, debilitating climate, their great ture and art Charles Dickens' descriptions of old-fashioned winters in London may be due to the fact that of the first nine Christ-mases of his life between 1812 and 1820, six were white; white Christ-mases are uncommon in London today. Clouds covered 70 to 75 percent of the sky in famous landscape paintings of England's John Constable and J.M.W. Turner in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Paintings in the 20th century, on the other hand, show a lesser cloud cover of 55 to 70 percent We can't foretell, for sure, future climates, let alone the effect on history, but one thing is certain. Past climatic changes may have fostered the spread of diseases, adversely affecting the progress of civilization.

Medical miracles of the 20th century conquered polio, smallpox and pneumonia, among other afflictions. Thus, relationships between climate and health aren't going to affect history as in eras gone by. Some readers may be interested in more information on this fascinating subject of climate and history. I unequivocally recommend "Climate, History and the Modern by H.H. Lamb, published by Methuen University of East Anglia, Norwich, England.

Some of the material in this article comes from that book. Frank T. Bodurtha, who retired from the Du Pont is a chemist and meteorologist who has observed Delaware weather for more than 20 years. Taylor's Hardware JC Penney National Bank 284-3236 DELAWARE GARDENER by Bob Hochmuth Aphids cause sticky residue THE COMMUNITY SINGERS, INC. NOV.

9-10-16-17 at 8 PM MATINEES 11 17 $4.00 POVER CENTRAL MIDDLE SCHOOL this type of storage much better than others. Among vegetable seeds, those of cucumber, endive, melons (both cantaloupe and watermelons), squash, pumpkin, cabbage, cauliflower, eggplant and radish are usually perfectly good. Bean, tomato, beet, pepper, celery, carrot, lettuce and pea seeds are usually all right if you plant them a little thicker than normal. But corn, onion, parsley and parsnip seeds should be thrown out and the new ones purchased next spring. Among flowers, most of the common varieties keep very well those like alyssum, calendula, cosmos, petunia, marigold, zinnia, pansy and nasturtium.

China aster, strawflower and dusty miller seeds will probably be all right if sown heavier than normal. Seeds of del- Ehinium, candytuft and burning ush (kochia) should be thrown away. For the thrifty-minded gardener, the National Garden Bureau has come up with a new idea for storing leftover garden seed. It's a simple approach that keeps seeds dry while keeping them cool. You just take a paper towel and roll up a "Couple of ull of powdered dried milk from a freshly opened package.

Secure this with a rubber band. Place the roll of dried milk in the bottom of a wide-mouth jar and immediately drop in packets of leftover seeds. Seal the jar tightly using a rubber ring to exclude moist air. Store the jar in Tickets Available at. Boscov's (Courtesy Desk) Hess Apparel FOR Muriel's Gallery Red Turtle Karl's TV Smyrna Hardware Lou's Bootery Milford Pharmacy MORE INFOt CALL 734600 OR I have a weeping willow tree that has a sticky black covering on the branches and leaves.

A variety of bees and wasps are also now very active on the tree. What is the problem with the tree? A variety of shade trees are attractive to aphids, soft-bodied sucking insects. As aphids feed, they excrete a sweet liquid called honeydew. The honeydew drips onto the upper leaf surfaces of leaves below providing a perfect environment for sooty mold to develop. Sooty mold does not directly infect the tree leaf but in severe cases can reduce photosynthesis by blocking the sun's rays from the leaf.

Honeydew, since it is a sweet liquid material, is a very valuable source of food for bees and wasps, and that is why they are very active around the tree. Control of the aphids is the solution to both the sooty mold and wasp problem. I have some leftover vegetable seeds from this spring. Will they be suitable for planting next spring? Two things influence the ability of old seeds to germinate" the kind of plant they're from and the way in which the seed has been -stored. The life of most common flower and vegetable seeds can be greatly prolonged by storage in a dry, cold atmosphere.

Some kinds of seeds will tolerate iA A RENAULT ALLIANCES i STOCKI 6 Good Buy 84's ALL OVERSTOCK PAINTS INTERIOR EXTERIOR BENJAMIN MOORE FULLER O'BRIEN MARKED DOWN the refrigerator, not the freezer. I have a euonymos bush in my yard that has yellow spotting of many leaves but seems to be especially bad on individual branches. Some branches have dropped leaves and appear to be dead. What is the cause of this problem? The problem you describe sounds like euonymus scale. Scales are sucking insects that are covered by a protective shell or scale.

Euonymus scales are often found along stems, branches and leaf veins. These crawlers move about on the plant, find a suitable feeding site and settle there to feed and produce their own shell Heavy infestations make the stems encrusted with a layer of scales. This covering makes control difficult with conventional contact insecticides. The recommended method of control is a dormant oil spray during the dormant season. Many oil sprays are labeled for summer application to actively growing plants.

Summer applica-' tions at labeled rates will also help greatly in scale control. Be sure the oil spray is labeled for summer use if you intend to apply a spray to actively growing plants. Material for this column is prepared by specialists from the Dela-ware Cooperative Extension Service, University of Delaware. Send questions to The Delaware Gardener, News Journal papers, P.O. Box 1111, Wilmington 19899.

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