Tree ring width‐based January–March mean minimum temperature reconstruction from Larix gmelinii in the Greater Khingan Mountains, China since AD 1765

A ring‐width chronology of Larix gmelinii (LG) was developed in the northern Greater Khingan Mountains region of China. The response function analyses revealed that the local mean minimum temperature of January–March (T1–3) was the most limiting factor affecting the radial growth of LG trees. Based on correlation analysis, a reconstructed T1–3 series from 1765 to 2013 was produced using standard ring‐width chronology. The reconstruction explained 41.2% of the total variance in recorded monthly mean minimum temperatures from 1960 to 2013. The reconstructed T1–3 series had similar variability when compared with the May–September mean temperature reconstruction in Inner Mongolia (IM) and the February–March mean minimum temperature reconstruction in Yichun (YC). This reconstructed T1–3 series also captured the severe snow disaster and cold wave events recorded from historical documents in Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia. Spatial correlations between reconstructed series and gridded temperature data also provided a high level of confidence. In addition, significant relationships between the reconstructed T1–3 series and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), solar activity, indicated that the T1–3 variation might be influenced by large‐scale ocean–atmosphere interactions. The sampling site of Eerguna (EEGN), and other locations mentioned in text for comparison including Inner Mongolia (IM): May‐September temperature (Zhang et al., 2011) and Yichun (YC): February‐March temperature (Zhu et al. 2015). The cities NJ (Nenjiang), YC (Yichun), HL (Hinggan League), TL (Tongliao), and SH (Suihua) were marked with asterisk. b (1) Observed (black line) and reconstructed (blue line) T1‐3 for the period of 1960–2013; (2) reconstruction of T1‐3 in EEGN for the last 249 years. The smoothed redline indicates the 11‐year moving average, and blue dots represent the cold years which were recorded by Wen (2007).