GERMANY: With central Europe firmly in the grip of a cold snap, it is not all about idyllic snow scenes, but cars not starting and plants wilting early

Record ID: 333216

  • Title: GERMANY: With central Europe firmly in the grip of a cold snap, it is not all about idyllic snow scenes, but cars not starting and plants wilting early
  • Date: 2nd February 2012
  • Summary: BAYRISCHZELL, GERMANY (FEBRUARY 1, 2012) (REUTERS) ICED OVER WENDELSTEIN (MOUNTAIN RANGE IN ALPS) CHURCH ICED OVER TOWER AND CROSS AT CHURCH ICED OVER CHURCH BERLIN, GERMANY (FEBRUARY 1, 2012) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SCENES) WIDE OF ADAC (AUTOMOBILE ROADWAY REPAIR SERVICE) WITH HAZARD LIGHTS AT SIDE OF THE ROAD WARNING TRIANGLE ADAC REPAIRMAN CHRISTIAN ACHTER TAKES STARTER CABLES FROM HIS CAR STARTER CABLES BEING ATTACHED VARIOUS OF ACHTER LOOKING INTO BONNET CLOSE OF MOTOR ENGINE (SOUNDBITE) (German) ADAC REPAIRMAN CHRISTIAN ACHTER SAYING: "It is very important in the cold that the car should not only be moved for short distances - which is quite common in a big city - but driven for longer distances, so the engine has a chance to get warm." ACHTER LOOKING INTO BONNET, WHILE DRIVER STARTS CAR, TILT DOWN TO ENGINE BEING STARTED BARE TREES WITH SUN SHINING THROUGH PAN BARE TREES AND SNOW ON GROUND VARIOUS OF EARLY BLOOMING FLOWERS IN SNOW (SOUNDBITE) (German) SPOKESPERSON FOR BOTANICAL GARDEN BERLIN, GESCHE HOHLSTEIN, SAYING: "Domestic plants, plants that are at home in central Europe, are quite adapted to the changing climate. They all have their own strategy, mostly that they have some ingredients within the cells like sugars or salts. It is like an anti-freeze agent that we put in our cars. So the cells have their own protection against freezing and can buffer easily such a cold snap." EARLY BLOOMERS IN SNOW MAGNOLIA BUD CLOSE AND EARLY BLOOMERS IN SNOW ROBIN
  • Embargoed: 17th February 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Germany, Germany
  • Country: Germany
  • Topics: Environment
  • Reuters ID: LVA8BVKRQJE7R23FI12942SGESNY
  • Story Text: This is how we all like winter: a snow-covered church in the mountains looking pretty in the sunshine. The little church in the Wendelstein area of the Alps is, at 1.700 metres, above sea level the highest church in Germany. Covered in a big layer of ice after the abundant rains at the beginning of the year, the 'icy' church now attracts tourists from all over with its picturesque look.
    But the icy weather is not only about romantic images but headaches for many people. One of the most common ones is the car not starting in the morning. And that leads very quickly to a call to the automobile roadway repair service (ADAC in Germany) which are on constant alert these days.
    More often than not the culprit is the battery says ADAC repair man Christian Achter, who is already out on the roads when most of us are still in our warm beds. The best solution he tells Reuters would be to start getting ready for the winter when the first leaves start to fall. But since most people don't do that, Achter is out giving drivers a jump start.
    It is also helpful to drive the car for longer distances he says. "It is very important in that cold the car should not only be moved for short distances - which is quite common in a big city - but drive it for longer distances, so the engine has a chance to get warm."
    Not every car can be put back on the road by Achter. Some do need to go into a garage if the cold has destroyed some vital parts. But the "yellow angels" as the ADAC are fondly called in Germany because of the yellow colour of their logo will do whatever they can to get the cars back out on the road. That means that Christian Achter will be out and about for some hours yet.
    Quite the opposite to cars suffering in the cold, domestic plants are used to the changes in weather. The first early bloomers can be seen through the thin lawyer of snow, daffodils and tulips are already budding. They are not bothered by the chill, as Gesche Hohlstein, the spokesperson for the Botanical garden in Berlin, told Reuters.
    "Domestic plants, plants that are at home in central Europe, are quite adapted to the changing climate," she explains. "They all have their own strategy, mostly that they have some ingredients within the cells like sugars or salts. It is like an anti-freeze agent that we put in our cars. So the cells have their own protection against freezing and can buffer easily such a cold snap."
    Not so lucky are the gardeners who have Mediterranean plants in their gardens. They need to be covered in autumn in order to survive the frosty temperatures, Hohlstein says. Or put in green houses or indoors
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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