ABSTRACT
Phenology represents the seasonal timing and annual repetition of biologic life cycle events and is a characteristic property of ecosystem functioning and predictor of ecosystem processes. Shifts in phenology depict a canopy’s integrated response to environmental change and influence local biogeochemical processes, including nutrient dynamics, photosynthesis, water cycling, soil moisture depletion, and canopy physiology [1]. An understanding of vegetation phenology is prerequisite to interannual studies and predictive modeling of land surface responses to climate change [2–4].
