Why an ability to chill may explain the proliferation of blossoms right now

I have noticed an explosion of flowers this spring like nothing I have seen in many years, and I believe that one of the greatest botanical mysteries can explain the current abundance of blooms.
This mystery concerns the connection between winter cold and spring flowering. The usual explanation given is that a sufficient number of hours of winter chill – when temperatures are less than 45 degrees between September 1 and the end of March – are needed for a plant to break dormancy or o