With the very cold temperatures we’ve had this week it is leading many to ask the question just where is spring and are there any signs it’s even soon arriving? The past week has been very cold with a major cold snap hitting during mid-week. The high on Wednesday rivaled the coldest of the year. Here in Cumming just southwest of Des Moines it was just 11.F with a low of -4.F on Thursday morning. To put that into prospective the typical high for this time of year is in the upper 30s so it was 26 degrees below normal. Normally we would be entering the time that the southern part of the state gets warm enough to see the first bloom of the season however like last year that does not look to be the case due to lingering cold snaps. Last years lingering cold kept the first bloom at bay until March 9th, same for this year?

Even with the cold temperatures there are still a few signs of spring that can be found if you hunt. Today we had a very welcomed break from the arctic air with 30s and 40s across the western and southern 2/3rds of Iowa and in some cases as warm as 49.F in Sioux City! We settled for a high of 40.F here in Cumming which resumed a slow melting of the snow cover. A snow cover that has been stuck in an idle patchy state averaging to 1 inch. The grass is showing in many places giving it at least the look of spring’s soon arrival. Another sign of spring is the current leafing out stage of the spring bulbs pictured above. This plant is Snow Crocus which started sprouting during our mild January are now going through a snails paced progression due to the extreme cold.  Spring flowers including Crocus extremely hardy and these proved it making it through two nights of -2 and -4.F last week. Two more signs of spring I’ve seen are Robins have returned to southern Iowa and are singing and the sap of Maple trees is starting to rise.

What can we expect this spring in the garden? If cold temperatures continue to linger much longer into March I expect that spring-flowering season will have an extremely fast progression this year once warmer weather does arrive. When spring blooming plants are allowed a longer them normal dormancy period it usually triggers very fast growth-to-bloom period and taller plants. I also expect a shorter bloom season especially if it turns warm quickly. Continue to follow my posts as I will be following the spring growth season including the first flower which should be just weeks away. Just remember spring is on its way regardless of how cold it currently is!