How do plants use photoperiodism to sense changes in their environment?

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Plants determine the change of seasons, such as spring and winter, by responding to long-term variations in light levels rather than just the immediate conditions on equinox days. The surrounding days before and after the equinoxes provide a consistent pattern that plants use to regulate their seasonal behaviors. For those interested in further reading on plant biology and how plants sense seasonal changes, resources like "Botany For Dummies" are recommended for accessible explanations aimed at non-experts.
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How do plants know when it is spring time or winter time?
 
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Plants respond to long term changes, yes two equinoxes are indistinguishable in terms of light levels on the days themselves but the surrounding days both before and after are mirror images of each other.

This longer term change in light levels is how plants regulate their seasonal behaviour.
 
Thanks ryan_m_b. Can you point me to some reading/reference materials on this particular subject?
 
I'm afraid I don't, I'm not a plant biologist and it has been years since I have studied the topic. I'm sure there are some books that you could find on plant biology written for the layman, perhaps http://www.dummies.com/store/product/Botany-For-Dummies.productCd-1118006720.html? I haven't read it but I have found the "for dummies" series to be very good at producing explanations for a non-expert.
 

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