Vernalizing

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The technique of enhancing floral development in plants by simulating the climatic conditions of springtime
2. This agricultural practice involves exposing seeds or plants to a controlled environment that triggers blooming as if it were spring
3. Exposing plants or seeds to a period of cold to stimulate flowering at the appropriate season

Etymology: "Vernalizing" is the present participle of "vernalize," a verb meaning to expose seeds or plants to a period of cold so that they flower or develop as if a season had passed. The base word comes from "vernal," meaning "of spring," which descends from Latin "vernalis," from "ver," "spring." The suffix "-ize" turns a noun or adjective into a verb meaning "to make, subject to, or treat in a certain way," a pattern that entered English through Latin and Greek and is attached to countless scientific and technical verbs. So the word is a plain technical coinage built from familiar parts: "make spring-like" by way of cold treatment. Its meaning comes straight from the horticultural practice it names, with no shift in sense from an older usage.

Synonyms: seasonal, spring-like, blooming, flowering, thawing