No that is true,some places less than normal according to CA radio. I see my state is smack in the middle of the normal to below normal temps! As usual!
1 Like
Maybe El Nino makes a return in March…guess we’ll see. Looks like winter hangs around out east. Nothing wrong with that…i’d rather not have trees blooming in March.
I’d like to know if the trees down in Kansas are near bloom…with all that heat down there…even Omaha should be in the 60Fs today/tomorrow.
It is mid seventies here in sw Missouri. I took half a day vacation , dang nice to be out in the warm air. They keep the office cold year around. Supposed to cool off next week but just into the fourties or fifties. The lows at night will be just at freezing.
Drew my man that’s the biggest advantage MI has in growing fruit, due to the great lakes springs stay cool longer than surrounding areas. As to all the other supposed advantages of MI that you keep mentioning, ya to a limited degree. MI is still very much more like NY than CA.
We have the most powerful El Nino on record right now. This correlates strongly with a very wet winter here. But the ground reality has been different. The Northern parts of CA are getting the full effects and are getting rained on frequently. The Southern parts are unusually dry. We in the bay area are in the middle and are having a pretty normal winter, precipitation wise. It is believed that warmer temperatures globally is dampening the effects of this strong El Nino.
The good thing is that the most important reservoirs in the North, Shasta and Oroville, are getting good rains in their watershed areas. The Sierras are getting good snows too. That’s the only saving grace this winter. The folks in SoCal are a bit SOL. Unless a Miracle March occurs.
Look at what just happened in Spain…they were further ahead then the California folks with regards to bloom:
[quote]The frosts recorded on Tuesday night this week in different regions of Murcia have caused severe damage to agriculture, especially to stonefruit crops, whose campaign could be catastrophic, and also to artichokes, citrus fruits and leafy vegetables.
The flowering of stonefruit trees was already at an advanced stage due to prolonged spring temperatures during the autumn and winter. “The damage to the trees that were already in bloom is very serious, with losses for extra-early varieties ranging between 40 and 80%, depending on the area, and temperatures that have oscillated between -2 and -7 degrees Celsius,” as reported to FreshPlaza by José Luis Muñoz, of COAG Murcia.[/quote]
1 Like
I would agree, once Alan and I, compared average temps and they were very close. Although the last few years NY has been warmer. No doubt CA is king! All I ever meant it is no reason for anybody to throw in the towel. Still decent fruit can be produced elsewhere. Good enough for me anyway. I’m very excited about spring yes! I still have raspberries, i have to finish them off! I just ran out of onions and garlic. I’m planting more garlic this year it was outstanding! My oregano, thyme, and basil all look to be surviving indoors, they need to go out soon though! It’s been a good winter!
1 Like
It can sure happen here too. I hope we don’t have too many of these record warm days yet. At the earliest bloom here should be in early April. If you get bloom in March I think you are in trouble.
Here is an article from 2012 and what happened just a few miles south of me when we had a record breaking heat wave in March. It was surreal driving through the area with all the trees in bloom when there should have been snow on the ground. The next week we had a big snow storm (around 20 inches if I remember right).
warm, does it look like there are any more possibilities for the polar air mass to get dammed up? I’m hoping not. Those punches when it splits and breaks loose afterwards are not kind.
Here is the 16 day for Jackson, MS from the most current model run… wouldn’t be too worried…maybe a few nights in the upper 30Fs…if that
2 Likes
We are headed towards 80 today. Crazy warm for February. I’m taking kids to the zoo. Bad news is trees are waking up way to early. Oklahoma is notorious for a March freeze. Our average last is April 7th ish. Here is O’henry peach Others arent near as far along but could be soon.
1 Like
I finished pruning my old peach tree today. I felt like it looks better than I did last year. I guess we will see if we dodge the frost and if I can get some peaches. I saw a buzzard today, it is the first one this spring.
1 Like
Mike, your peaches are farther along than mine. Out of the choices of early harvest, and wipe out by freezing, I do hope you get the first.
Even though I personally enjoy days of really warm temperatures, I’ll gladly forego them until they are ready to come and stay for a long while. We’re having rather nice temperatures now - overcast upper 60’s today; low 70’s tomorrow; then rain and 60’s and 50’s for a good string of days. The 24 hr. temperature averages have been running just a few degrees below average. As far as I’m concerned, that’s okay. This is the first year ever that I’m not impatient to see blooms! I’m so happy that most seemed to slow down before crossing the threshold of no return.
The youngest son helped me plant 4 trees today. These and one other were the sole survivors of the 15 that I had arrive last June, just as the high summer temperatures settled in for the duration. They originally had very little in the way of roots. I held them in the shade in root bags with a very loose, well drained mix. I had intended to plant them in the fall after they had gone dormant, but the very warm autumn and early winter, combined with flood after flood, delayed dormancy until January. It was also not possible or wise to plant with the muddy ground. So, today we planted the Zestar, Goldrush, Arkansas Black, and Korean Giant. These trees had merely survived the summer, putting out meager growth, but my son was greatly impressed by the now lush feeder roots. The potting mix fell away almost effortlessly, leaving the healthy root systems intact. I’m hoping for normal to good growth on these trees this year to make up the year that was lost.
1 Like
Will you try protecting for frosts/freezes?
I thought today here was mild and we only hit 47F. Still snow left on the ground, but a lot of it got wiped out the last few days. Mostly just piles.
Well I’m not really sure what to do. This is my first year for a decent bloom and hopeful crop. This is the third summer for 3 of my peaches and plums. I have a few frost cloths I could put on them but if we get our normal late freeze it won’t do any good. Last day in February last year we had an over night low of 19 and the next day it never got above 32
Muddy,
My Gold Rush has not grown much in two years. I blame it on my below average soil. However, the KG just wants to grow. If I don’t head cut them most years, it would be 20 ft tall by now.
Good luck with your new trees.
1 Like
I’m with you Mike. I never know what to do either. Each yr I pick out maybe one big tree and a couple little ones to protect. I have a pretty good record of saving the fruit but not without major effort. I was just out selecting candidates most of which have started blooming or will by months end.
I cover the big tree with a big tarp and put a 750/1500 watt heater inside. Smaller trees get a cover and light bulb or heat lamp.
My leading candidates right now are Honey Lite nectarine about 7-8ft tall and wide, and small trees of Valley Sweet peach or maybe the pluerry. That’s about 3-4 trees out of ~70 outside. No apricot or grape protection this yr. They were saved last yr. I might decide at the last minute to protect the persimmon mostly because freezes are so hard on them.
Fruitnut. I might try something similar. Only problem is my nearest power is about 150’ away. Good thing I’m an electrician. Lol.
1 Like