Going Above and Below

The long range forecasters had it wrong this winter, at least when it came to Florida. I've written before about the unusual cold air we had this past December, coldest on record as a matter of fact. Now, our supposedly dry winter has turned into above normal rainfall for January. This week we saw an El Nino style storm system whip a cold front ashore from the Gulf of Mexico. The cold front brought lots of gusty winds, many tornado warnings and good soaking downpours. Our backyard rain gauge ended up with 1.5 inches.

Unlike the below average cold spells and hard freezes, this abundant January rain is a very good thing. It will help with the soil moisture, keep our wildfire danger low and put a little more water in the aquifer. Yes, above average rain is a good thing to get before heading into the typically dry spring season.

With the cold weather easing and the rains falling, the garden has been starting to look better these days. Cabbage is growing nicely and our potted blueberry plant is busting out with blossoms. Inside, grape tomato seedlings and our latest variety of cotton is shooting out of the pot.