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Possible Florida Freeze - December 2017


RedRabbit

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Looks like the first freeze (30-32F) arrived for pretty much all of Houston. Corpus Christi got slammed, hovering at 32F since 1am (I hope Mr. Coconut Palm is okay). Both Brownsville and South Padre are at 34F right now. Galveston might be the winner with a low of 35F. 

I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being the coldest temperature of the season, especially for the Rio Grande Valley. 

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Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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They are forecasting low 40's for SW Florida near the coast.

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Lived in Cape Coral, Miami, Orlando and St. Petersburg Florida.

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16 minutes ago, Xenon said:

Looks like the first freeze (30-32F) arrived for pretty much all of Houston. Corpus Christi got slammed, hovering at 32F since 1am (I hope Mr. Coconut Palm is okay). Both Brownsville and South Padre are at 34F right now. Galveston might be the winner with a low of 35F. 

I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being the coldest temperature of the season, especially for the Rio Grande Valley. 

Luckily not all of Corpus got down to 32, I saw a lot of 35’s give or take on the island and at the Naval Air Station on the flour Bluff.  The few coconut palms around won’t like it for sure but I don’t think they’ll up and die over it as long as it warms back up soon enough. Forecast has them up to mid sixties this weekend and then to mid 70’s by next weekend. 

  • Upvote 2

Corpus Christi, TX, near salt water, zone 9b/10a! Except when it isn't and everything gets nuked.

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30 minutes ago, Xenon said:

Looks like the first freeze (30-32F) arrived for pretty much all of Houston. Corpus Christi got slammed, hovering at 32F since 1am (I hope Mr. Coconut Palm is okay). Both Brownsville and South Padre are at 34F right now. Galveston might be the winner with a low of 35F. 

I wouldn't be surprised if this ends up being the coldest temperature of the season, especially for the Rio Grande Valley. 

I sure hope so. I think we are in a negative AO for the next two weeks. Here's the 10 day loop.

gfs_850_loop_new.gif

Edited by IHB1979
incorrect map
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21 hours ago, Xerarch said:

Oh boy, so 26 degrees latitude at low elevation and near the coast isn’t enough to avoid snow in early December? Texas is so ripped off, I have long known and vocalized this but it still surprises me. 

The Valley sure does have weather swings, but it’s not entirely bad! It’s amusing actually! :P The irony of seeing palms covered in snow is very entertaining and is worth the while that it’s here. It certainly is great to be in a tropical looking area that can sustain tropical plants and still allow us to have a slight taste of winter. The RGV surely does live up to its “Magic Valley” name.   

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20 hours ago, Xenon said:

Looks like the model wasn't crazy 

image4.png.e906874332fe8af6afd6e29475243

 

Low temperature forecast has gone way down too. 34F for Brownsville and 38F for South Padre Island.

Somebody please take some pics of tropicals in snow??? 

Oof, if only I had read this early, I would’ve taken a picture of one of the coconut palms that I see everyday on my way to school. It was sad to see that it’s older leaves were already yellow, but in my opinion it looks like it is going to survive! Its emerging set of leaves still looked healthy to me. If the cold spell leaves quick, I’m sure everything will be fine. Even our Royals, Royal Poincianas, papayas, and bananas have taken the brunt of the night. Thankfully, it seems like onditions should only get better from here on out. 

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16 hours ago, topwater said:

Coconuts in particular.  Coconuts plus snow plus Christmas = tropical Christmas meme machine. 

The aftermath, however. 

Will try to get pictures of the three coconuts closest to me, along with whatever damage they sustain. 

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12 hours ago, AnTonY said:

So...time for Texans to pack their bags, and move to FL?

I love Florida with all my heart, but Texas is crazy fun! Lol

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So. Louisiana today.  Snowed for 8 hours, 29 forecast low tonight.  About 4 inches thick on my truck.

IMG_4090.JPG

  • Upvote 6

In my post I sometimes express "my" opinion. Warning, it may differ from "your" opinion. If so, please do not feel insulted, just state your own if you wish. Any data in this post is provided 'as is' and in no event shall I be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, damages resulting from accuracy or lack thereof, insult, or any other damages

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9 hours ago, AnTonY said:

So...time for Texans to pack their bags, and move to FL?

Let us not forget that Florida is not immune, here’s a gem from Tampa 1977. Also snow flurries have been recorded as far south as Homestead  

Photo courtesy Bing images

ECB74892-1BF8-4344-ADEB-190C4BCC5AD5.jpe

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Corpus Christi, TX, near salt water, zone 9b/10a! Except when it isn't and everything gets nuked.

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Can someone tell me how far down into Mexico snow flurries (if any) and temps below 40F were recorded during this cold event?

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5 hours ago, _Keith said:

So. Louisiana today.  Snowed for 8 hours, 29 forecast low tonight.  About 4 inches thick on my truck.

Brrr... I don't think I could handle that.

Ryan

South Florida

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The rain is really coming down now.  After it passes, the temperature will start to dip.  Looking like a few nights in the mid-to-high 30s in the forecast for here.  The lucky ducks in St. Pete beach aren't supposed to go below 45.

Lakeland, FL

USDA Zone 1990: 9a  2012: 9b  2023: 10a | Sunset Zone: 26 | Record Low: 20F/-6.67C (Jan. 1985, Dec.1962) | Record Low USDA Zone: 9a

30-Year Avg. Low: 30F | 30-year Min: 24F

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How bad was it?  Check out these photo from Corpus Christi.   Remember, Coconuts grow there.

 

CC.jpeg

  • Upvote 4

In my post I sometimes express "my" opinion. Warning, it may differ from "your" opinion. If so, please do not feel insulted, just state your own if you wish. Any data in this post is provided 'as is' and in no event shall I be liable for any damages, including, without limitation, damages resulting from accuracy or lack thereof, insult, or any other damages

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The forecast low increased to 41f so no danger of a freeze here. Sorry to see what happened in the western gulf, it is hard to believe it snowed in S Texas.

Westchase | 9b 10a  ◆  Nokomis | 10a  ◆  St. Petersburg | 10a 10b 

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Despite the snow, I don't think many areas of Deep South Texas/immediate shoreline even reached freezing at all. So the challenge was surviving 2 days of cold, rainy weather (highs in the 40s, lows in the 30s).

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2 hours ago, _Keith said:

How bad was it?  Check out these photo from Corpus Christi.   Remember, Coconuts grow there.

 

CC.jpeg

Correction: coconuts USED TO grow there :-( That looks awful!

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4 hours ago, AnTonY said:

Despite the snow, I don't think many areas of Deep South Texas/immediate shoreline even reached freezing at all. So the challenge was surviving 2 days of cold, rainy weather (highs in the 40s, lows in the 30s).

Multiple cold, wet days in the 40s are brutal for coconuts. 

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5 hours ago, Yunder Wækraus said:

Correction: coconuts USED TO grow there :-( That looks awful!

Coconuts have survived a blanket of snow which came with lower temperatures (~28F) before in 2004. So I think they'll be fine considering it didn't even drop below freezing. Brownsville hit 70F today and the 10 day forecast also shows nothing but highs in the 70s. 

Edited by Xenon
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Jonathan

Katy, TX (Zone 9a)

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One of the north facing coconuts that is in my area is doing just fine. Yesterday when I passed by the property that it is located on, it looked just as green as it was in the summer. Perhaps the snow had an insulating effect. On the morning it snowed, another coco that is located on my route to school only showed yellowing of its oldest fronds. But other than that, the same palm had a pretty healthy, green crown. I have yet to see how my neighbor’s very young coco faired. But so far so good down here in the RGV. If I’m not mistaken I think my town just north of Brownsville reached 32 degrees for about an hour during the morning that it snowed and just missed it last night. SPI, I’m sure stayed quite above it as well. 

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3 hours ago, LF-TX said:

One of the north facing coconuts that is in my area is doing just fine. Yesterday when I passed by the property that it is located on, it looked just as green as it was in the summer. Perhaps the snow had an insulating effect. On the morning it snowed, another coco that is located on my route to school only showed yellowing of its oldest fronds. But other than that, the same palm had a pretty healthy, green crown. I have yet to see how my neighbor’s very young coco faired. But so far so good down here in the RGV. If I’m not mistaken I think my town just north of Brownsville reached 32 degrees for about an hour during the morning that it snowed and just missed it last night. SPI, I’m sure stayed quite above it as well. 

One thing to watch for is even though it may look green now it sometimes takes a few days for the fronds to brown, especially the lower ones. Hope everyone in the south that got hit by this snow recovers with no more cold weather!

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Lived in Cape Coral, Miami, Orlando and St. Petersburg Florida.

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The lowest I saw was 41f... It looks like Orlando and Daytona got a few degrees colder this time around, but all of urban/coastal Central Florida seems to have avoided a freeze.

Westchase | 9b 10a  ◆  Nokomis | 10a  ◆  St. Petersburg | 10a 10b 

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My lowest reading was 40.5F so far.  Looks like a few more chilly nights ahead.

Lakeland, FL

USDA Zone 1990: 9a  2012: 9b  2023: 10a | Sunset Zone: 26 | Record Low: 20F/-6.67C (Jan. 1985, Dec.1962) | Record Low USDA Zone: 9a

30-Year Avg. Low: 30F | 30-year Min: 24F

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3 hours ago, kinzyjr said:

My lowest reading was 40.5F so far.  Looks like a few more chilly nights ahead.

I think the low for me was about 40f this morning, but I saw there was some frost on the roof for most of the houses in my area. Did you get any frost over there?

Westchase | 9b 10a  ◆  Nokomis | 10a  ◆  St. Petersburg | 10a 10b 

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Here in Holly Hill I had a 38.8 as a low .

The houses in the neighborhood with no overhead trees had light frost on the roofs  . None on the ground.

 

 

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My backyard thermometer says that I hit a low of 33.3 Fahrenheit here in Gainesville, Northern Florida.  It will be in the sixties Fahrenheit today and will go back to normal (the seventies) in a couple of days.

What amazed me is that, even at 9:00 am when the temperature had crept up into the forties, there was still frost on the rooftops around my place. 

I saw the lowest temperatures in real time on wunderground.com.  Regionally, the temperature span at 6:30 am was from was 26 F to 38 F, ranging from outside (northwest) of town to the centre of town.  A twelve degree range within the same tiny region is significant.

 

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45.2F overnight here. I'm relieved.

I was up last night between 12:45 and 2:00 and the temp dropped from 48 to 46. So did my spirits. To have the temp essentially stay put for the rest of the night was a blessing. Low overnight Sat. was 46F with howling winds. Winds have let up significantly and the sun is shining brightly. I hope to get back to normal 70s/50s soon.

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

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Got to 28 yesterday morning at my location. Enough to make tender annuals and bananas die back. 31 this morning. For other plants in my yard, not to bad- Strelitzia nicolai, no damage; Philodendrom selloum, no damage; even a jatropha plant has minimal damage.

Still have A LOT of winter to go though. Hoping for nothing colder than 9a.

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.... And meanwhile it was only got as cold as 69 F in Nassau, Bahamas, even though Nassau is further north than Key West, FL.  At the same time, the temperature bottomed out at 61 F in Havana, Cuba (similar to Key West).

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We had 42F this morning at Leu Gardens. It was 38F at my house in Altamonte Springs, 12 miles to the north.

Eric

Orlando, FL

zone 9b/10a

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There was frost on the roof tops here, even on my way to from Cape Coral to Ft Myers. I have 3 temperature sensors in my yard, the lowest they recorded were,

36.1 - next to an open field.

38.2

40.6

All this was at around 2:45am, then actually warmed up after that.

I know that sounds cold for this area but my sensors always record a bit low.

 

Edited by Palmaceae

Lived in Cape Coral, Miami, Orlando and St. Petersburg Florida.

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7 hours ago, RedRabbit said:

I think the low for me was about 40f this morning, but I saw there was some frost on the roof for most of the houses in my area. Did you get any frost over there?

I had frost in the front of my property, but in the back there was none (as usual).  I covered the coconut palms since I figured it would go below 40.  Tonight they are on their own, and I'll probably cover them again tomorrow. 

Here are some pictures of frost in Polk: http://www.theledger.com/photogallery/LK/20171211/PHOTOGALLERY/121109995/PH/1

It looks like I was slightly warmer than the airport:

 

20171211185900_weather.png

Lakeland, FL

USDA Zone 1990: 9a  2012: 9b  2023: 10a | Sunset Zone: 26 | Record Low: 20F/-6.67C (Jan. 1985, Dec.1962) | Record Low USDA Zone: 9a

30-Year Avg. Low: 30F | 30-year Min: 24F

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3 hours ago, Eric in Orlando said:

We had 42F this morning at Leu Gardens. It was 38F at my house in Altamonte Springs, 12 miles to the north.

While I know you don't want too much cold at Leu with all the zone 10 stuff, I'm sure chilling hours are good for all the temperate trees/plants there. Have they not thrived as much in recent years with all the warm winters?

Edited by Opal92
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10 hours ago, RedRabbit said:

I think the low for me was about 40f this morning, but I saw there was some frost on the roof for most of the houses in my area. Did you get any frost over there?

Gotta issue a correction there, I checked again and it was really 39.4f. Open yard was probably about 37f.

9 hours ago, Sandy Loam said:

I saw the lowest temperatures in real time on wunderground.com.  Regionally, the temperature span at 6:30 am was from was 26 F to 38 F, ranging from outside (northwest) of town to the centre of town.  A twelve degree range within the same tiny region is significant.

 

Gainesville really does have an underrated heat island going on. It sounds like downtown is 9b.

5 hours ago, Eric in Orlando said:

We had 42F this morning at Leu Gardens. It was 38F at my house in Altamonte Springs, 12 miles to the north.

42f is impressive for Orlando. 38f really isn't that bad either imo.

3 hours ago, Palmaceae said:

 

There was frost on the roof tops here, even on my way to from Cape Coral to Ft Myers. I have 3 temperature sensors in my yard, the lowest they recorded were,

36.1 - next to an open field.

38.2

40.6

All this was at around 2:45am, then actually warmed up after that.

I know that sounds cold for this area but my sensors always record a bit low.

 

What do you account for the 4.5f difference? One of the thermometers a little off? 

3 hours ago, kinzyjr said:

I had frost in the front of my property, but in the back there was none (as usual).  I covered the coconut palms since I figured it would go below 40.  Tonight they are on their own, and I'll probably cover them again tomorrow. 

Here are some pictures of frost in Polk: http://www.theledger.com/photogallery/LK/20171211/PHOTOGALLERY/121109995/PH/1

It looks like I was slightly warmer than the airport:

 

20171211185900_weather.png

That's really something, I saw Pasco County and eastern Hillsborough got a lot of frost too. Good call covering the coconuts, hopefully they'll get past this cold event unscathed. 

Edited by RedRabbit

Westchase | 9b 10a  ◆  Nokomis | 10a  ◆  St. Petersburg | 10a 10b 

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Inland Naples reporting in: I had a low of 37 yesterday early morning :angry: Low of mid-40s this morning. There were moderate frosts both mornings but plants don't look damaged. More specifically, the rainbow eucalyptus out back and the bottle palms up front appear to have no damage, but I'll get a closer look this weekend since I leave for work while it's somewhat dark out, and get home when it's completely dark. How I loathe this time of year! :rage:  Anything sensitive of below 60 or 50 is potted and is still camping out in my dining room enjoying the upper 60s-mid-70s and daily mistings (and probably will be there until Friday morning or even the weekend).

Naples (inland), FL - technically 10a but more like 9b in the winter :hmm:

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48.0F this morning

45.8F Mon. morn

46.0F Sun. morn

Quite a run for this cold spell. The wind makes it seem colder. At least the sun is shining.

Meg

Palms of Victory I shall wear

Cape Coral (It's Just Paradise)
Florida
Zone 10A on the Isabelle Canal
Elevation: 15 feet

I'd like to be under the sea in an octopus' garden in the shade.

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I hit 40F Sun, 39F Mon and 45F Tues in Keystone, FL

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Looking for:  crytostachys hybrids, Pseudophoenix sargentii Leucothrinax morrisii, livingstona canarensis

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