Bill, there used to be beavers, not only upstream, but they even extended downstream onto my part of the stream! But about 8 yrs ago, apparently someone upstream got permission to trap/remove them, and then the dam I show below on my lot (and the ones upstream) got taken out by the next major flood.

Nice picture of that beng.

41 North,

The part of my reply to beng about drought, was also intended for you too (or anyone). :-)

Quote:

' I've had nothing but near desert soils to grow stuff, most of my life, and even with porous, fast draining soil, once we get seriously dry (up to 4 ft. down here), it can take several inches of moisture, all within a similar time period, to bring us up to normal again.

And all this varies from year to year, with some years better than others.

Again, I think the science of tracking drought, focuses purely on soil moisture levels.

But imo, there are other variables, that can affect this.

For example, In the drought year of 1976, I noticed in July, when my corn was burning up, 2 feet tall, with scorched leaves, my neighbors, less than 2 miles to the west, who had nice, deep, clay loam soil, had corn 5 ft. tall and still a nice green color.

No doubt their corn suffered in yield with a season like that, but my drought was worse than their drought, even though both had hardly any rain that season.'

We had a good rain last night, followed by 2-1/2" of wet heavy snow. The snow blower barely handled it but beats shoveling, especially where the snowplow pushed a 2ft. high by 3ft. wide windrow of wet slushy snow across the driveway.

Today it's melting off the roof and the streets and driveway are dry again.

A few days of cold coming.

I'm finally getting a little spring fever.

These will be going in as soon as the snow is gone. I don't want a back log in case of the remote chance I buy more plants this spring. :-))

There would've been 8 but the black hills spruce was a replacement and had a tag already.

" my guess is that all the higher slopes around me draining downward are still frozen enough that the melt is running off and not soaking in. "

I absolutely believe this happens, but around here it was only a day or so before the soil thawed out and started 'accepting' the melt water again.

Why do I think this? On my first walk once it warmed up, a few days ago, I saw water sheeting over the surface of the soil in a part of my yard. Normally I only see this odd appearance in the summer, after a cloudburst that drops well over an inch in an hour or whatever. But the next day it looked normal.

BTW, here is my thread about wetting agents

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6464124/gardening-concepts-explored-and-discussed-watering-and-wetting-agents

The only time water runs on top of my soil is if it's frozen solid, but I've described my soil so many times here, in the past, we won't go there again. 🤣

New story:

I know a guy that had a trip planned last week, to western Montana that required snow to be present on the ground. There was no snow there as of a week ago in that high altitude area, so the trip was off. It appears they've received some since. I found that event astonishing for an area with high snowfall amounts annually. 😮

It appears Russia and Canada got most of the white stuff so far this season.

Next:

With only 9 days of meteorological winter left, the cold appears to have reorientated itself back to the west. 🤞

Here, we received a 'Skiff' of snow last evening and the forecast is for seasonably cold temperatures with one -5df next Monday morning with 20's to 30's for highs during the next 10-day period with Sunny to PC skies. 🌞

So, nothing unseasonable for my area and IME; we won't get overly warm here until the snow is gone. Kinda like having ice in the icebox.

The way it melted the snow yesterday, with the temperature only 30d with filtered sun off and on, I'm still leaning on earlier than normal warm up. 🤫

Bill, cold pushing south into the west US now, along w/rain-snow events. Often (but not always) means milder temps for the east US. The cycles are a moving roller coaster. But does finally look like more avg precip for the east US, at least for a while.

That would be great beng.

Relief from the drought at least.

The biggest factor (at least here and maybe everywhere in the NH) is the sun altitude gains a degree every third day (and more as time goes on). Even with colder weather, if the sun shines, we will see melting here (and soon warming, but not soon enough haha!).

"... if the sun shines, we will see melting" That's why we generally don't see a lot of thawing Dec through Feb here in Michigan - the sun only shines between 20-30% of the time. Recent rains have washed away much of the snow cover at my location, but the ground is still frozen for the most part. Map below is from https://us-climate.blogspot.com/2015/03/average-cloudiness.html

Crazy weather here in SE MI yesterday - not far to the south of my location there were high temps in the 60s, but locally it only reached 40 degrees, and we had a hailstorm in the evening!

It was cloudy today here too but there must be percentages of cloud opacity.

Even though it was 27d last night and today, the snow melted off my deck and driveway.

Cloudy but 'Bright Cloudiness' if you know what I mean.

Partial sun can still help the thaw.

PS kind of early for hail, isn't it?

arbordave, the Great Lakes are a big cloud-producer in winter. Even here, produces alot of left-over clouds if not snow (Pittsburgh is the cloudiest US 48-state city, followed by Cleveland, THEN Seattle).

A lone rumble of thunder here yesterday and the most rain in a single event, prb'ly in 5 months, about 1.4 inches, tho that amount would be pedestrian in other yrs/seasons. Definitely stream flooding from this.

December, January and February are Minnesota's snowiest months.

Contrary to what many believe is March because of received large single snow events in March.

As far as cloud cover goes, I haven't kept that close of track, but we seem get plenty of sunny days during those months, meteorological winter (Dec, Jan, Feb).

But it is what it is.

I didn't move here to garden. I moved here and then noticed the lack of almost anything (besides weeds and stuff) growing in the yard.

So, what better motivation, to plant things, than looking out on your yard and not seeing any woody trees or shrubs whatsoever? Now I see plenty and have enjoyed the journey.

And personally, I don't care, this is becoming closer and closer to my last yard venture.

eta: And I'd like to see every year of growth; I have left, on these trees. It means a lot to me. ;-)

We're close to family here and I already told dw, my next move will be either temporarily to an apartment, rest home or permanently to the mortuary. lol:

Light snow flurries today and cloudy but bright cloudy.

15df.

Snow coming up for UBG?

Forecast is for about 8" here, but I feel like it's going to underperform, especially since the upper bay is free of ice again. (Cecil Co. was moved to the DC NWS office a few years ago. It doesn't seem to have improved the forecast quality for us, so I still always check the Philly area office first)

My Ericas, especially 'Katia', stayed in bloom under the snow. So the unending 'chain of flowering' has not been broken as it was in 2013-2015. 🤣

At least one witch hazel as been blooming since the initial warm-up a month ago. This is 'Wisley Supreme', which smells like Froot Loops.

Upgraded now to a Blizzard Warning..., 1.5 feet of snow, thunder, wind. Blizzard warnings now out for Eastern Va. So over this winter! Solar angle just about 40 degrees now, a lot that helps.

No surprise 41, when you guys get the storms, we get the cold, almost predictably.

Zero tonight here, ten below Monday morning.

The bright side is, the sun does moderate the cold not only once it gets here but further north, before it gets here (which always arrives on the NW winds).

If this weather pattern was a month ago, it would be negative 25 instead of minus 10.

I know, I know, still cold and to be honest, I'm working on my fourth jigsaw puzzle, and this one is a 2000 pc. 27"x39". I'm almost done after 3 solid weeks of un-puzzling it. 🤣

Keeps me 'in focus' during gardening 'Down Time'.

A little over 33d sun altitude today.

This winter seems abolutely endless..., even though my 7a/b Zone speed limit was not violated (minimum was 4 F). This storm is stronger but atmosphere is a bit milder. Up to two FEET of snow in southeastern NJ from Atlantic City on up the coast. Those coastal communities are going to be crushed, don't think they have the same resources as the northern end of the state. And this is not like your MINNESOTA snow..., it weighs a TON! I have no feel for what kinda Spring we will have, but something tells me the severe storm (tornado) season will be bad over the country this year, just a feeling.

We're back in the deep freeze this morning with -9, and as mentioned, not nearly as bad as it could be for this zone.

You just never know when you're this far inland and have the Missouri and Mississippi river valleys, channeling cold air south and southeast.

Wyoming has mainly been missing a lot of cold weather, and we know whose fault that is. 🤣

But here it's like an undulating blob of polar air. I won't call it a 'Vortex' but I think it's caused by the 'wobble' of the Arctic jet stream. Come on sun!

Beng,

You actually have a town named Frostburg near you?

I'd call that a cold-blob. :)

Bill, yup. I'd guess that (at the time in the mid 1700s) Cumberland, the rather major transportation-gate thru the mountains and west - named it Frostburg because it was decidedly colder than Cumberland. Just guessing here w/o looking up the history. But there ARE people w/Frost as a last name.....

Interesting tidbit -- the football team Washington Redskins used to summer practice/condition in Frostburg @2200ft elev because of the much cooler summer temps than Wash DC.

This was truly a classic nor'easter. Almost anywhere on the coast from the Mason-Dixon line to the Cape of MA got 15 or more inches. Many areas just inland had 20" or more. Providence, RI is at 24" and counting. Even Wallops Island, VA, got 11". That's more than their average annual! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallops_Island

There was a 98 MPH gust on Cape Cod...well into hurricane strength!

Fortunately my power has stayed on. It was only about 6", and could barely stick to my driveway, so I just did a quick pass with the plow to push the slush to the side so that it doesn't freeze over the next couple nights. It's still above 32F. Quite a difference from the awful 'snowcrete' of a month ago.

It tells you something about east coast climatology that Philadelphia beats all other large cities for all time record single storm snowfall. Why? It's a little inland, giving it less warmth from the ocean, and secondarily I think, because it's further south, the upper levels of the atmosphere can probably hold a little more moisture.

https://weather.com/storms/winter/news/2026-02-23-east-coast-blizzard-snowstorm-bomb-cyclone-noreaster-recap

Glad to hear you came out okay UB.

Should help with any drought?

I hope so! We're actually going to come out close to normal for February, maybe even a hair above.

Feb. has one of the lowest rainfall amounts in much of the north eastern US (counting snow of course) - BUT - the standard deviation is also one of the lowest. So it's unlikely to be much higher or much lower than that amount. I really hope we don't have another dry year. I have a bunch of shrubs that I'm saying, 'this has to be the year' they get planted. For example Pittsporum 'Sappy' has obvious hybrid vigor, and quickly outgrew a 1 gallon pot, and it's about to outgrow a 3 gallon pot! https://cistus.com/products/retail-pittosporum-x-sappy

Afternoon update on the snow (4pm ET) - wow what a difference a month made. It's already melted from some grassy areas! I predict it will be GONE by Thursday. Good riddance!

Ben - they smell better than they look! 'Sappy' might be the most vigorous BLE I've ever grown from liner size.

Pic of the bomb-blizzard.

PS Pittsporum flowers from a search look endearing, almost artificial.

'Then Weather Station broke' haha! That's a real classic.

The last snow we got was pretty wet and heavy, but I'll bet not as slushy as you guys got.

Everything off the coast there was rain, so the conditions for formation of snow on land must've been marginal.

Our slushy snow generally happens in March and by then, the temps warm enough and it melts within several days or so.

Only 5 more days of winter left so hang in there!

:-)

I had TWO FEET of snow, it was not very cold, nor did I have any wind. You actually get the greatest snow amounts when temps are just on the colder side of marginal! Did the shoveling and got the car out without a cardiac incident. For me, this was not a "blizzard", it was a strong snowstorm. I only truly remember one "blizzard" here in NJ, it was in the 1970's. They changed the definition of "blizzard" years ago, used to be that temps under 20 F were part of the definition, along with loss of visibilty, nothing to do with massive snow depts. Massive East Coast snowstorms tend to be moister and milder than the types of storms out west, just a different creature. I doubt Philly is the northern limit of that deep tropical moisture feed (off the Gulf Stream). I'd wager to say it's Nova Scotia. Definitely seems like we are in a wet pattern.

P.S. Upper Bay, I love Pittosporum, I grow P. tobira.... Had Podocarpus growing outside for several years but found out the deer love to eat it, guessing they will also eat Pittosporum.

' Massive East Coast snowstorms tend to be moister and milder than the types of storms out west, just a different creature.'

I agree, you have access to way more moisture than we have.

But that's okay 41, we've had near 5" of rain here, in just a few hours, in the past, that's enough for me.

(edit 34d sun angle) now and predicted sunny almost all week.

:-)

Apparent the nor'easter was reading this thread...because...Philly has been de-crowned. Providence, RI had 32" or more today.

I wasn't saying Philly was the northern limit, just that there's more moisture available in the upper levels of the atmosphere, closer to the equator. I did say it was a secondary factor. Providence is also not on the immediate coast. It also would have less of an urban heat island that Boston or NYC.

(edit 34d sun angle) now and predicted sunny almost all week.

40 degree sun angle here and still in some kinda frozen HELL, further south than Rome, a bit south of Naples..., five foot snow drifts here. I really don't think there is any climate on earth more at war between a subtropical, south and subarctic, north!

When you have a lot of snow and cold around, it's like "ice in the icebox". It supplies cold (absorbs heat) held within.

You'll need some south winds and sun to warm all that stored cold and break it all down.

After it all melts, you'll see the temperatures rise remarkably.

Up here, it's 5 times worse. There's a lot of stored cold. lol!

Some info here in the "blizzard totals".

https://weather.com/storms/winter/news/2026-02-23-east-coast-blizzard-snowstorm-bomb-cyclone-noreaster-recap?cm_ven=hp-slot-2

Without taking away from what you guys experienced lately, MN has had its share of crippling storms over the years. I remember most of the following events.

Based on historically significant winter events, the winter of 1968-1969 is widely recognized as one of the most severe in Minnesota history, often cited for producing extreme snow totals (30-50+ inches in some areas) and multiple (6), frequent blizzard events throughout the season. Still considered second worst storm in MN (Southwest Minnesota specifically faced intense, crippling, and recurring blizzards during the 1968-69 season).

The Thanksgiving weekend blizzard of 1985 (21.1 inches in some areas) is also ranked among the state's top snow events, along with the severest winter ever in MN occurring in 1880-1881.

Most Intense Single Storm: The "Halloween Blizzard" of 1991 is generally considered the most severe single storm event.

So, I can relate to what you guys are going through.

❄️⛄❄️🌨️

I won't bore everyone with too many pictures, but we've had a few snowy winters here.

I think 1991-92 were pretty bad along with 2017-18.

Here's February 2022: (no AI involved in this picture). <giggle> (21-22 winter)

December 2022: (22-23 winter).

Not all our winters had this much snow 'All Winter' long. We've had some winters where the little snow (8-10") we get in Nov/Dec melts down to nothing by end of Dec or Jan, then after that, we get those late winter dumps later in February/March.

In case of interest, here's an article on the 1991 HW blizzard.

Duluth really got hit. We received ~20".

Anymore, you have to wonder about the authenticity of pics, but this is from the snow-storm at Providence, RI where near 40" fell w/major winds.

Judging by the amount of snow on the houses with high wind, it's plausible.

We drove from Everett WA to Levenworth WA in February, once and saw 10-12 ft. high, sheer walls of snow on each side of the highway, on part of the highway heading over the Cascades.

Don't ask me how they do it.

this snow was sticky, I had one foot piles on top for handrails.

Magnolias were not damaged at all though.

It's good 41, you're getting by without much damage.

And now it's only 2 more days left to winter. 😎👍So we're out of the woods!

And I mean it. The first week of March is looking pretty good.

Most, if not all of our snow will be gone after this.

This substantiates my reasoning for relying on meteorological seasons; they correlate much closer to what actually happens here.

I should get paid for this! 🤣

"This substantiates my reasoning for relying on meteorological seasons; they correlate much closer to what actually happens here."

That is because you guys are in a very interior, continental climate. In a coastal area (even in the East), there is a much greater seasonal delay, We've acturally had our longest heat wave in September, record coldest ever recorded toward the end of metereological winter (in mid February), first frosts occur some time in the first half of November. Spring warmth takes a while to take hold, but overall growing season is relatively long, something over 220 days. Hear you about the milder weather coming, into the 60's now in the extended week forecast.

As I get older, I feel like I would appreciate an even more oceanic climate!

Sun angle now 42 degrees, and March sees the biggest differences from day to day. With all the white out conditons and barren deciduous trees, the days are almost unbearably bright. That is one nice thing about the snow at this time of year..., interior light is amazing.

@41 North, yeah, I've read early March is sometimes some of the coldest winter temps in parts of Maine.

We have an average of 150-180 frost free days.

Probably on the higher side, if you don't grow tomatoes! 🤣

Chinook winds start up again tomorrow evening.

We'll probably get a wintery blast or two, yet to come, but they don't last all winter, haha. 😏

Our outside burger joint opens this Wednesday. 😀

Goodbye winter! 😁

Joe Bastardi says big warmth comes soon in March, then big cold returns middle of March. Click on the Saturday Summary on the right.

https://www.weatherbell.com/premium

March is a wild month, not my favorite month, but like the 70's coming up

You guys are a little confused. March has nothing to do with meteorological winter.

OT 🤣

February numbers are in, and for the 4th month in a row at my location the avg temp was below normal. Here are the approximate departures from normal for each month: Nov -1, Dec -4.5, Jan -4, Feb -1.5 The ground here is still solidly frozen in most places.

Yes, mine just in. ;-)

Highs in the low 40's to low 50's. Snow is down to scattered snow piles and in sheltered areas.

Maximum ground freeze was at a depth of 7" in parts with the snow cover.

Still, some ground frost with marginally freezing nighttime temperatures.

My yard has open areas with some drifts of 18" deep remaining in shaded parts.

PS: This winter was considered a 'Return to Normal' after the last two milder than normal winters.

Thought this was cool -- said to be the most famous N Dakota picture. Result of the March 1966 N Dakota blizzard. Some FB comments stated correctly that the telephone poles along a railroad weren't as tall as typical poles, so there's that.....

It's totally possible.

Back during those bad winters in SW MN, the snowbanks/drifts kept getting higher from repeated snow removal then wind drift and reoccurring storms.

Even RR transmission lines are at least 12 ft. high.

Something I noticed that confuses -- the caption on the FB pic said the above blizzard happened 60 yrs ago (1966), but 1996 is shown in the pic? So not sure what's correct, but one would think those old RR telephone lines would have been mostly dilapidated (lines missing, insulators broken/gone) by 1996. Those in the pic look in fairly decent shape....

PS: Searching, 1966 is correct. The date on the photo may be when it was copied or just a simple typo.

I don't put much faith in what's posted on FB.

Winter has finally died here, still some snow around for us to remember. Still not the worst winter I remember, worst was one in the 1990's with continuous ICE storm events, not even snow. It was a nightmare!!! Temps here now predicted to be reaching 70-75 soon.

P.S., Noon solar angle now, 44 degrees, but who is counting?!

haha! Great 41.

Some snow piles in the shade where it drifted or was piled.

Been melting day & night for the last several days.

Rain tonight and all day tomorrow, that should help finish it off.

I went around the yard today and removed some short tubes at the base of trees that I didn't want smaller rodents feasting on.

There's enough green grass showing to satisfy the rabbits.

Moved some of the wood mulch I piled on last Fall away from trunks a few inches.

Just good to get outside and do something in the fresh air!