Another Frost Risk In Vermont Tonight, As If We Need It

Water beads cling to a plant in St. Albans, Vermont 
Wednesday evening after a little rain. A frost risk
tonight and very dry weather will continue to
challenge Vermont gardeners and farmers. 

 Frost advisories are flying for all of Vermont except the Champlain Valley for tonight as another blast of late season Canadian air is now entrenched in the Northeast for another day. 

The National Weather Service in South Burlington is awaiting more data today to decide whether or not to expand the advisory into the Champlain Valley, so most of us are at risk. 

This is not what we need, given the apparent extensive damage from last week's frost. 

I'll have much more on that issue in a separate post later this morning. That upcoming post will explain why I suspect at least parts of Vermont will be declared a disaster area because of the freeze damage.

The cold tonight won't be as bad as last week's record setting chill. But with many fruit crops already damaged, this isn't great news. I don't think additional damage will be that severe, at least I hope, as most places should stay above about 30 degrees. 

But remember: It doesn't have to officially get down to 32 degrees for frost to damage sensitive plants. Temperatures are typically measured five feet or so off the ground. On clear, calm nights like we anticipate tonight, it can be much colder around our toes than it is around our head and chest. It could be 35 degrees where your arms are checking the thermometer and 32 degrees down where your tomato starts are freezing. 

The sun re-appears Wednesday evening in St. Albans, 
Vermont after a cold front dropped about a quarter
inch of rain, which isn't much. Next up: A frost
risk in Vermont tonight and more dry weather. 

For most of us, this will very likely be the last frost and freeze of the season, except in the normally coldest hollows. Which will probably have a frost tomorrow night, too. But the rest of us will be safe.

If you get through tonight's frost risk, everything will be fine in your garden or on your farm, except for more looming dry weather. 

The rain that came with yesterday's cold front wasn't all that impressive. Most of us got a quarter inch or less. It amounted to a small sip, but not the drenching we need. I even noticed last evening the soil was still dry under the thickest foliage in my garden. 

Things will continue to dry out rather ominously.  Absolutely no rain is in the forecast through next Tuesday, and probably beyond. 

We are also set to start a strong warming trend.  By Sunday, temperatures should top 80 degrees, and by Tuesday or Wednesday, we could see some upper 80s. 

The sun will stay out through this time (except at night, of course) and humidity will stay pretty low, which maximizes drying. It's going to be pretty dusty around here by the early and middle parts of next week. 

I still think we might be headed for a drought. We're not there yet, but we'd better have some nice soakers as we get into June.