Let me be among the first to welcome you to “Fool’s Spring”! Highs flirt with 50 Saturday into Tuesday, but it’s still a long way from Actual Spring.
Which presents a few challenges: With subfreezing nighttime lows comes more refreezing of water into black ice. An intense freeze-thaw cycle means a proliferation of potholes. Some trees begin to lose their winter hardiness when temperatures stay above freezing. If this is followed by a typical March cold snap, trees can suffer internal damage or lose their flower buds for the entire year.
Rapid freeze-thaw cycles can push perennials and bulbs out of the soil, exposing their roots to dry, cold air, which often kills them. A February thaw can spoil the maple syrup harvest before it even begins. “Gee, thanks, Paul, for spoiling my shorts-in-February vibe.”
I don’t talk about snowfall one to two weeks out, but in vague, handwaving terms let me close by mentioning a better chance of accumulating snow later in February as temperatures fall back to the 20s and 30s.
Enjoy the thaw — winter ain’t over.
