Where are the colors?
What happened to the nice summer-like weather we were experiencing last week?
Temperatures were running in the mid to upper 80s and folks were enjoying a lot of outdoor activities. Things changed abruptly and these past few days have seen the weather patterns go from 10 to 15 degrees above normal to 10 to 15 degrees below normal.
Snow fell in Denver a few days ago with a low temperature of 15 degrees. Snow even fell in Arizona and Texas as the upper air weather pattern took a more wintry approach. The cold weather has moved east and there is even the possibility of a few wet snowflakes in our forecast on Sunday morning.
Below average temperatures should be with us through the end of October. Normal temperatures for the last two weeks of October are a high between 64 and 60 degrees and lows between 42 and 38 degrees respectfully. We should see highs mostly in the 50s and lows in the 30s. This should be cold enough to experience our first frost and even a freeze.
Frost occurs when the temperature dips to 32 degrees for just a short period of time. A freeze occurs when the thermometer drops below 32 for an extended period of time. This several hours of intense cold actually freezes the plants usually bringing an end to any further growth this season. Some plants can withstand a light frost. The first killing frost in our area is usually around October 20, but in the mountains, it can be a week earlier.
The earliest frost was on September 17, 1959 and the latest was November 11, 1994. Our earliest snowfall was on October 3, 1974 when cars and rooftops were covered in the lower elevations and 2 inches fell in the mountains. On Halloween 1993, six to eight inches of snow blanketed all of Southwestern Pennsylvania.
We had an unusually wet August and September and then it got very warm in October and this may have prompted Mother Nature to keep the factory open producing a lot of additional chlorophyll to keep the plants and trees growing late again this season. You may recall we had a similar situation last year with the colors being some two weeks later than normal. In past years the colors have come and gone in the mountains by mid-October, and this year, they are just beginning. Lower elevations have little or no color, although the cooler temperatures should start the process in the next few days. What little color we have in the mountains is very dull and muted and a number of trees have just shed their leaves.
Normally, this is the height of the blazing colors of fall. We should still experience some displays of autumn glory. Perhaps this is just another problem with the increased heat and rains as the result of our ever changing climate.
Keep on the lookout as there is bound to be a bit of color in the coming days.