Does unreasonable autumn weather push back spring work?

Beginners
1

Just reached the one year mark doing bonsai, so I’m not personally familiar with how much unseasonable weather affects later work and I’m hoping someone here can advise.

Here in Melbourne, Australia we had a freakishly hot and dry March, with it being hotter than all of summer despite being the first month of autumn. Because of this, my deciduous trees are only now starting to turn colour in early May (end of autumn) and aren’t yet ready for leaf drop pruning.

Does the March autumn heatwave here mean that winter dormancy will last longer this year? Or should I still expect my trees to start breaking bud in July/August? Obviously I’ll just keep an eye on my trees and see, but I’m really curious to know if this is something I should expect.

Thanks all!

2

I would think that for most trees the warm autumn will have little impact on the spring behavior since the trees will meet their minimum dormancy period. However, species that have a particularly long dormancy period may have issues. Species from colder, longer winter areas that your normal climate may have issues and weak growth next year. For example, apples have a fairly long dormancy period and if it is not met, they will have a weak crop.