How Budburst Connects Gardeners to Climate Change Research
Learn how to participate in Budburst, a citizen science project that tracks plant development in relation to seasons and the weather
Participatory science helps advance climate change research
In participatory science, people from all walks of life contribute to research projects that build toward a better understanding of the natural world. Usually designed and managed by professional scientists, these programs allow an organization to gather a larger amount of data, perhaps over a bigger area or time period, than would be possible for a small team to collect. Meanwhile, participants learn more about the subject at hand, gain experience in the scientific process and put their passions and efforts toward a bigger cause.
In the United States, there are hundreds of participatory-science opportunities, with programs designed to work on a local, regional or national level. Many can be found in the searchable catalog at the website CitizenScience.gov. One project especially interesting and convenient for gardeners across the United States is Budburst.
What Is Budburst?
It began in 2007 as Project BudBurst and was managed by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research and the National Ecological Observatory Network. In 2017, the Chicago Botanic Garden took responsibility for the program, now known as simply Budburst.
In this project, people monitor plants and record their changes, such as flowering, fruiting or leaf drop. (Visits from pollinators can also be noted.) The study of the timing of such events is known as phenology. This science tracks the life cycles of plants and animals in relation to environmental factors like temperature, precipitation and day length.
Goals of Budburst
Budburst’s goal is to collect phenological data that can be used to understand how plants respond to the seasons and, over time, how they may be responding to changes in climate—such as warmer springs, longer autumns and wetter or drier summers. This data can then be used to identify patterns and trends in climate, plus potential implications for people, animals, insects and plants.
Because plants are at the bottom of the food chain, shifts in their life cycles can affect the rest of the ecosystem. For example, if a plant blooms early due to a warm spring, the insect that typically pollinates it may not be available. Without pollination, the plant won’t set fruit or seed. So, an early flowering affects the pollinating insect, any animal that would eat the plant’s fruit and the plant’s own population.
Phenology also sheds light on solely human concerns, such as seasonal allergies and cultural events meant to happen in sync with plants—like spring’s cherry blossom festivals and fall’s leaf-peeping season.
Via its website, Budburst makes all its collected data freely available for anyone to view, download and use in their own research projects and classrooms.
Get Involved in Budburst
Anyone who wants to participate in Budburst can create an account at budburst.org. There’s no cost, and no set period to sign up—join any time. Members then submit their observations through the Budburst app or the online portal. There is no set schedule for observations. Budburst offers a list of species to look for, which can be sorted by state and plant group (conifers, grasses, etc.). However, members are also welcome to observe and record other species.
Record your findings
To create a record, members can use the Budburst app or the web-based portal. They record the date, the name of the plant, its location (address or latitude/longitude) and what’s happening. To make this final observation, members select from a menu of options. For example, when observing a wildflower, a member can check off the state of its flowers, from “none” to “all withered”; its fruit, from “none” to “late”; and its leaves, from “first shoot” to “all withered.” The different states are defined to help the observer choose the best description. They can also upload a photo.
Connect with other members
Being a part of Budburst helps connect members to a virtual and local community, if they wish. The app can point a member toward other plants near them that have been observed, if they’d like to check those out. And all the Budburst data can be narrowed by state, if members want to learn about the plants being monitored in their area. And members can create or join a group and collaborate on data collection.
There are also activity suggestions on the Budburst website for groups—like adopting a trail or creating a native-plant garden—and for educators and families, with age-rated games, experiments and lessons.
