It says that a temperature increase of between 1C (34F) - 5C (41F) will vastly increase the ability of flowers to produce their sweet smells.

 

The study, published in the journal Global Change Biology, suggests that plants are able to produce more terpenes – the chemicals that give them their smell - in hotter conditions.

 

Despite the environmental risk linked to climate change, the effect on flowers could also help bee populations as the stronger smells make flowers easier to find and pollinate.

 

It also found that the effect could be more significant in cooler countries such as the UK and would have a stong impact on fruit trees.

 

The finding comes as the unseasonably warm autumn weather this year has led to reports that plants are being 'tricked' into blooming early.

 

Guy Barter², chief horticultural adviser³ at the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), described the findings as interesting and said it could have a significant effect on lightly scented⁴ flowers.

 

'We think about climate change in terms of rising temperatures and sea levels but there are more subtle potential effects which we have not thought about,' he told the Sunday Times.

 

Last year, experts from the Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change warned the average global temperature had risen by 0.5C in 50 years.

 

They predicted temperatures will increase by 3C over the next century, causing a rise in sea levels, flooding, disease outbreaks and mass migration⁵ of refugees.

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