The procession of spring continues
The magnolia and forsythia blossoms have given way to the flowering crab, dogwood. And closer to the ground, the wildflowers of the forest are spreading their carpets of color on the hillsides of Southwestern Pennsylvania.
The magic of spring蘑菇视频 rebirth is everywhere. Many yards are filled with colorful flowers as folks get to witness the blooms of their past efforts in planting spring bulbs that come up year after year. We have daffodils that have bloomed every spring for over 30 years and the best part the deer and rabbits leave them alone. Tulips at least in the mountains do not fare very well but urban gardens have some truly spectacular displays.
In the city areas, the colors of spring are at least 10 days earlier than more rural areas and at least two weeks ahead of the mountains. You can see this very clearly just looking up at the mountains from any location in the lower elevations that affords a view of the higher terrain. The line of green spreads upward and each day you can witness the journey of spring. The nice feature about our area is that if you live in town and want to see spring all over again just take a ride up into the mountains and you get to see it happening for a second show about two weeks later. The reverse is true in the fall when the leaves turn color first in the mountains and then spread down the mountain side and into the urban areas. All of this happens due to the higher elevations being about five degrees cooler.
The cooler temperatures in our rural and mountain areas also play a big role in our spring planting efforts. While the ground has warmed, the safe date for planting is usually the May 10 for city areas, May 20 for more rural locations and May 30 for mountain locations. I have even recorded frost and freezing temperatures in the mountains in early June. This is a rare occasion, but should cause us to pause when buying plants for early planting.
Normal temperatures for the last week of April are 68 degrees for the high and 44 for the low. Of course, mountain temperatures are usually five degrees colder. The forecast for next week indicates temperatures near normal and rainfall just a bit above.
Don鈥檛 forget it can even snow in Southwestern Pennsylvania in May. On the first of May 1963 1.7 inches fell in Uniontown, and many areas saw snow on May 9, 1966, when Pittsburgh measured three inches.
Don鈥檛 forget to peek at the mountains when your travels offer a view of the higher terrain and if you already miss spring take a drive up to see the spring show all over again.