Spring comes weeks early to US South - potential for frost

[essentialsaltes]

Thanks to an abnormally warm winter, green leaves are sprouting and flower buds are bursting weeks early across the Southeast this year. Spring has sprung prematurely, and depending on the weather during the next two months, this could have detrimental effects on this vegetation.

“Spring leaf out has arrived in the Southeast, over three weeks earlier than a long-term average (1981-2010) in some locations. Charlottesville, VA, is 24 days early, Knoxville, TN is 20 days early, and Nashville, TN is 18 days early,” the network wrote on its website. “In parts of the Southeast, this year’s spring is the earliest in the 39-year record."

“One of the biggest [concerns] is that we’re absolutely not past the risk of frost in a lot of these locations,” she said in an interview. “I’m seeing a lot of reports [of] leaf buds breaking and flowers blooming in a lot of those early-blooming plants. That’s definitely a problem.”

In 2017, abnormally warm conditions in February resulted in many species flowering prematurely in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. Then a severe frost hit in mid-March. South Carolina lost 85 to 90 percent of its peach crop. In parts of Georgia and North Carolina the blueberry crop was “devastated.” In Washington, about half of the cherry blossoms were damaged.

I can confirm that here in Southern California, our pomegranate is leafing out, but as the chart shows, this is normal.

 

[Sparagmos]

Cherry blossoms are blooming here in Oregon, about a month early.

 

[Messerve]

Yeah I hate when that happens. Seems very five years or so we get an early spring, all the fruit trees begin blossoming and then one last, rogue frost kills it all. There were no peaches last year and I fear that may happen again this year.

Saw crocuses close to blooming already. In February?? This is the Northeast.

 

[grasping the after wind]

If the Punxsutawney Phil is correct there will be no late frost.

 

[dqhall]

Thanks to an abnormally warm winter, green leaves are sprouting and flower buds are bursting weeks early across the Southeast this year. Spring has sprung prematurely, and depending on the weather during the next two months, this could have detrimental effects on this vegetation.

“Spring leaf out has arrived in the Southeast, over three weeks earlier than a long-term average (1981-2010) in some locations. Charlottesville, VA, is 24 days early, Knoxville, TN is 20 days early, and Nashville, TN is 18 days early,” the network wrote on its website. “In parts of the Southeast, this year’s spring is the earliest in the 39-year record."

“One of the biggest [concerns] is that we’re absolutely not past the risk of frost in a lot of these locations,” she said in an interview. “I’m seeing a lot of reports [of] leaf buds breaking and flowers blooming in a lot of those early-blooming plants. That’s definitely a problem.”

In 2017, abnormally warm conditions in February resulted in many species flowering prematurely in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic. Then a severe frost hit in mid-March. South Carolina lost 85 to 90 percent of its peach crop. In parts of Georgia and North Carolina the blueberry crop was “devastated.” In Washington, about half of the cherry blossoms were damaged.

I can confirm that here in Southern California, our pomegranate is leafing out, but as the chart shows, this is normal.

The other day I went to the pool and I heard someone’s AC unit turn on. Unusually warm in Florida. In the summer it gets so humid, if they do not use their AC, mold may form inside their homes. The vinyl siding turned green and black as moisture allowed algae and mold to form. People pressure washed and bleach washed their homes. Hurricanes were more intense over warmer ocean waters.