They interviewed the climate guy at our local NWS field office in White Lake, Michigan, who said that February looks to be the coldest one in the last half century, according to their most recent models.

The paper is called the Oakland Press, and the article was in the Tuesday edition, but I'm pretty sure it's NOT available online unless you have a paid subscription to their website, and I didn't have the presence of mind to cut it out and bring it with me today.

But, I just wanted to post a heads-up. I know we had an arctic front go through SE Michigan this morning, temps was around 20 this morning, heading for about 10 at sunset and lows right around Zero. Have to go home and turn on the space heater in the greenhouse to get the palms through the next three days, then a bit of a warm-up is coming, but still below freezing.

Just remember newspapers try to sell headlines and that one is sure to catch attention and sell papers. It takes many models for forecasting. I find chubby squirrels to be my indicator that works best, lol.

That said,I am sure things will not warm up to quick and we still have a ways to go.....AND,for the most part,February WILL be cold as in below normal....just like it's been(excluding this past November),for the past 2 years+.

One thing that is a little scary is that most of the existing snow cover was also present during the last Arctic outbreak and now it is being extended farther south.
If this continues and we do see another big Arctic outbreak the south(including Florida) will probably see another round of record breaking cold,maybe not as long of duration but possibly more extreme!

I'm going with dry and normal to maybe a little below here in Feb, although i think it does seem possible that Feb breaks warm at some point. I think MI east and south is where i would be worrying about cold.

The thing that I've noticed here in Michigan this year is that, while these arctic blasts have been going through, our lows are still on the mild side. Last night was like 2 at my place, pretty good for the end of January.

So far, all of the tops of my bamboos are still pretty green, with just a little tipburn. We'll see what happens. Many years by now, they are toast at this point. Of course, I've also had years where the killing freeze event didn't happen until late in the winter, when I thought I would be out of the woods.

Dennis
SE Michigan

http://www.accuweather.com/us/mi/detroit/48201/forecast-15day.asp?partner=accuweather&traveler=1&metric=0

http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=48201

After this coming week, they both seem to say we will be considerably above normal for a good part of February (upper 30's to mid 40's).

Glad they don't agree with NWS.

Trishmick, glad to hear that your windmill palm made it through single digits. They seem like they have the ability to become established in a zpne 7 in a good microclimate and after a few years. Good luck everyone!

The days are finally a little longer with dark coming after 5PM. When it gets dark before 5pm - it feels weird.

One of the best things about living in Michigan is that we are the very west end of the eastern time zone. It happes to be one of the widest time zones in the world at the point over Michigan. During the Winter 12-21, it get's dark around 5:15 to 5:30 p.m. During the Summer 06-21, it doesn't get dark until after 10:30 or 11:00 p.m.

If you are along Lake Michigan, or in the Upper Peninsula, it doesn't get dark in late June until 11:30 p.m or Midnight.

When I spent a week in Madison, WI at the 4th of July one year, the light broke on the eastern horizon at 4:15, and the sun was up a few minutes before 5:00, but set a little after 8:00. Kind of a waste of daylight.

IMO -- Daylights savings time should be made permanent, and maybe even bumped up an hour so that we are on Atlantic time zone. Yes, I realize that parents don't like their kiddies going to school in the dark in winter, and that would happen even more, but we could use the extra daylight in the evenings all year round to accomplish something outdoors, or even indoors.

When I travel south this time of year, I notice sunset significantly later in SC, GA, FL than we have in New York City.