I mentioned this in this blog recently, but several people have asked me about my thoughts of when our last freeze would be, especially considering how dry the central and western portion of North Dakota have been in recent months. As many of you know, even Fargo with relatively wet soils recorded two record lows… Read more Last Freeze
Month: April 2021
Where has all the Rain gone?
Rain has been lacking in many parts of North Dakota as most of us know. The southern Red River Valley has gotten quite a bit lately, including on Monday when some parts of Richland and Wilkin County recorded three-quarters of an inch. But with those few exceptions rain amounts have been watched closely this year. … Read more Where has all the Rain gone?
Snow Season
This past Sunday it snowed across much of southern North Dakota. It did not accumulate in Fargo, but it did in Bismarck. Getting snow on April 25 is later than average, but probably not as late as you may think. The average last date of accumulating snow in Bismarck is on April 18, meaning Sunday’s… Read more Snow Season
Last Freeze
As we slowly approach the time of year when the last freeze of the season occurs, there is one significant factor in place this year, that hasn’t necessarily been an issue the past couple of springs. That issue? Dry soil. Areas with dry soil will generally be noticeably cooler than areas with wet soil because… Read more Last Freeze
Cool Soils
The cool weather this week had definitely kept the soil temperatures down. Next week with some warmer weather expected the soil temperatures should make a recovery. How high those soil temperatures will go will depend about the amount of sunshine, any potential additional precipitation and in turn, how moist the soil will be. The Red… Read more Cool Soils
In Search of Snow
It was a winter without much snow and as I mentioned in this segment earlier this week, it was also a winter when the biggest snow event for many of us occurred in October. Although this winter seemed low on snow and it was certainly below average, in Fargo for example our snow total is… Read more In Search of Snow
Lack of Snow
Most of you likely remember that we have had three Octobers in a row with a fairly significant snow storm in North Dakota. I mention this because, the 4.2 inches that fell last October 20 has been the highest snow total of this season in Fargo. The Octobers of 2018 and 2019 both had storms… Read more Lack of Snow
April Snow
The recent snow in Fargo amounted to 1.8 inches over the course of three days. Snow in April is very common and most locations average between 2 to 5 inches during this month. In other words, the snow wasn’t uncommon for us this time of year. What may have seen a bit odd was that… Read more April Snow
Fire Season
The sun angle is now similar to what it is around Labor Day. The higher sun angle in combination of no crops in the fields means an enhanced ability to dry the soils in comparison to late summer. Plus, with precipitation averages also much lower this time of year in comparison to late summer that… Read more Fire Season
25 Years
This is more of a personal note today, than a typical weather post, but it was 25 years ago today that I started doing weather in Fargo Moorhead. Yes, on April Fools of all days. Also, but a complete coincidence, today is also the day I switched careers and joined NDSU 7 years ago. I’m… Read more 25 Years