I drenched my in ground trees prior to the freeze, but I wasn't sure what the optimal timing of the watering was.

Pertman -- your yard looks exactly like mine during a hard freeze! I've had good success down to 16 degrees F using frost cloth and incandescent light bulbs. As my trees get larger (tallest is around 7 feet currently) I'm not sure the protection will scale up adequately given the rapid increase in surface area of the covers, but we'll see.

Mark_T -- I'll echo Pertman's suggestion on using the National Weather Service's hourly forecasts. They're point-specific temperature forecasts at 5km x 5km resolution, updated at least twice a day. It's probably not a bad idea to glance at The Weather Channel and AccuWeather's forecasts just for an 'ensemble' of forecast ideas too. Disclaimer: I work for the NWS and like to think we're pretty good.

Looks like another cold outbreak next weekend affecting Texas east to northern Florida into the Carolinas. This next one should not be nearly as severe for the southern Plains and western Gulf coast, instead pointed more toward the Carolinas and Georgia. Afterwards it looks like perhaps some welcome warming beginning the week of Feb 13th as the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) pattern turns more firmly positive.

Tarmstrong, I hope you are right and we get a break from the constant arctic cold fronts! It looks like a 1035MB high is coming south which is not as severe compared to the 1050MB high this week. The most recent GFS 12Z run is not quite as cold. It does look really really cold in the northeast though late next week.

Here is my temp graph for the past few days (green is the sensor in the citrus area):

Pertman - I'd recognize Virtual Weather Station software anywhere! That's an excellent setup you've got with two temperature sensors by the way. Do you send your data to MADIS or Weather Underground? Your local NWS office can use your data to help refine their forecasts. We're fortunate to have dozens of volunteer backyard stations locally -- http://www.srh.noaa.gov/productview.php?pil=OSOILM

The Southeastern Climate Center has put together an excellent online tool called "Climate Perspectives" that tells this winter's story very well. All those purple 1's you see indicate this has been the COLDEST winter since records have been kept, in some cases dating back into the 1870s.



The ECMWF model is in pretty good agreement with the GFS with the strength of next weekend's high as it sinks south to the Gulf Coast. Let's hope this is one of the last southern cold outbreaks of this winter.

-Tim

Hi Tim;

You are most correct. I am sort of a weather nut. When I lived on the east coast I was a Skywarn Spotter. When I moved out here and called the local NWS office to get transferred, I was rather curtly told that the local office does not accept transferees and I had to start over because the weather in the desert is different than the east coast. I am awaiting notification of the next class.

I do upload to WU (Desert Oasis Ranch, KAZTUCSO136) as well as APRS (DW7006). Unfortunately, it seems that the Phoenix/Tucson NWS sites do not have either the mesomap or Climate Perspectives (or I can't find them easily).

Where would one find the models covering Arizona?

P.

That's really unfortunate the NWS office out there was so short with you. It's been my experience a one-inch hailstone looks the same whether it's in Florida, Kansas, or Timbuktu!

Here's my favorite link for weather models: http://ggweather.com/loops/ncep_loops.htm

Send me a PM if you have any questions interpreting the forecast model images - there's a lot there to take in!

-Tim

If the forecast temperatures are accurate, the average temperature for the first 15 days of February will be about 10F below normal! That is the coldest start to February since the 1890s! All this cold coming in a La Nina winter that should be above average.


The cold wave coming this week does not look very impressive. Temperatures will still be below normal but not nearly as cold as last week.

My summer apple trees are starting to bloom. I sure don't need a hard freeze now.

Randy

My summer apple trees are starting to bloom. I sure don't need a hard freeze now.

Randy

Flordaprince peach was blooming when the cold hit. i assume all the blooms are died. luckily that is only 1 of 3 on that tree and the others have not bloomed yet.

Why do peaches bloom so early? This is very odd for a temperate fruit tree especially with all the cold weather. They grow peaches in north Georgia where late freezes are probably common.

Snowing like crazy in Colorado, with winds 40 to 50 MPH. Storm is rapidly moving south toward TX, NM. Millet (707-)

i plan on keeping track of when my trees/varieties bloom, year to year. not sure why so early but it is a low chill variety.