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Mid Feb Arctic Blast - Fear in your heart


_Keith

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I compare a day/night like the last to being a child again on Christmas Eve. Excitement and anxiety all day yesterday and then to wake up a 5 am excited to peruse all the weather data stations. I am happy I'm not alone.

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Seems to be (officially) holding at about 28 degrees here, thankfully nothing catastrophic. Will have some damage for sure but everything can easily take lows like this and survive. Perhaps around my place is even warmer (usually is), will see once damage starts showing.

-Krishna

Kailua, Oahu HI. Near the beach but dry!

Still have a garden in Zone 9a Inland North Central Florida (Ocala)

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Just did a little browsing around and you see a really interesting effect around Ocala. The weather stations in the city are consistently in the 27-28 range but when you start looking at the airport station and the more rural stations slightly SW of the city the temperature is averaging 21-23. Is this much of a heat island expected in a city the size of Ocala? Ive noticed that the airport temperature rarely reflects what I experience even though its only a few miles away. Is this an example of soil radiation of heat (very sandy in this area) vs pavement?

-Krishna

Kailua, Oahu HI. Near the beach but dry!

Still have a garden in Zone 9a Inland North Central Florida (Ocala)

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Augusta, GA bottomed out at 18F where I live, but it was much colder east of here in the Midlands of South Carolina: single digits in places. Gross.

Joseph C. Le Vert

Augusta, GA

USA

Zone 8

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My low so far was 33 at 2:30am, and that was the most open part of my yard, the protected spots got down to 35. Shortly after 2:30am the winds picked up and the temps started to raise and we have been at 34-35 since then. I get the report from my wife what the temp is at sunrise.

I work in Naples and it was interesting to see the temperature differences on the way to work. as there really was not much of a difference. Usually when I go over the Caloosahatchee River the temps usually raise a couple degrees, not this morning. The further south I got the temps rose from 35 in Cape Coral to 37 in inland Naples, and 38 near the Gulf.

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

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OFFICIALLY fourth straight 10A winter. Dropped to 31.3F at 6am and is beginning to slowly rise. Despite a record cold high yesterday, this is not too bad. If this was Jan 10th it would have been brutal. Records broken everywhere. Even the "Tropics of Tampa" known as TIA broke a record. NO MORE WINTER! :mrlooney:

Begonias are my thing. I've been growing and selling them for three decades, nearly two in Tampa Bay. NPR is an bhour N of St Pete, coast

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My gut feels like it is going to get 40F-41F here with 37F in Orlando and 38F in Melbourne. I've called these things before.

I was right for Merritt Island, but undershot Melbourne and Orlando.

Tonight I am thinking 40F for Merritt Island, 35F Orlando, 36F Melbourne, 41F Cocoa Beach, 35F Palm Bay, 37F Vero Beach, 36F Fort Peirce, 40F for both Port. St. Lucie and Stuart. Outlying areas of Orlando to be anywhere between 29F and 32F.

Anybody else want to make predictions? Maybe we can have a Florida freeze pool :mrlooney:

37 merit island, 38 most of beachside, 40 cocoa beach south Patrick shores, 31 Orlando, 33 Melbourne, 32 west Melbourne, 32 palm bay, 37 vero beach and fort pierce, 38 port st lucie, and 39 stuart.

looks like more or less it is 38 merit island and beachside (except where I live 36) 33 Orlando, 35 Melbourne, 34 west Melbourne and palm bay, 34 vero beach, 35 fort pierce, 36 stuart, 38 west palm beach

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Hi Krishna. Actually, there is a strip of land about 30 minutes west of Gainesville and Ocala which is always insanely cold then a weather event like this happens. It stretches almost as far south as Wesley Chapel, FL. Maybe that is why it was so cold in the patch you are referring to. I drove between 4 am and 6 am to Orlando this morning and it was 28 F the whole way until Claremont, including the area around Ocala. For some reason, my backyard thermometer said 31 F (and so did the weather.com "now" temperature for Gainesville), but when I drove out into the street my car thermometer said that it was 28 F. At Leesburg, the car thermometer showed 29 F, then suddenly 34 F at Clarement, and then 36 F by the time I entered the real Orlando suburbs. Now the sun is up and surely temperatures will rise rapidly. This weather event was very hyped up to be a catastrophic freeze, but it really was no big deal. It was quick. At midnight, I still hadn't dropped below freezing.

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Hi Krishna. Actually, there is a strip of land about 30 minutes west of Gainesville and Ocala which is always insanely cold then a weather event like this happens. It stretches almost as far south as Wesley Chapel, FL. Maybe that is why it was so cold in the patch you are referring to. I drove between 4 am and 6 am to Orlando this morning and it was 28 F the whole way until Claremont, including the area around Ocala. For some reason, my backyard thermometer said 31 F (and so did the weather.com "now" temperature for Gainesville), but when I drove out into the street my car thermometer said that it was 28 F. At Leesburg, the car thermometer showed 29 F, then suddenly 34 F at Clarement, and then 36 F by the time I entered the real Orlando suburbs. Now the sun is up and surely temperatures will rise rapidly. This weather event was very hyped up to be a catastrophic freeze, but it really was no big deal. It was quick. At midnight, I still hadn't dropped below freezing.

Thanks for the answer! I didn't realize that stretch went as far south as Ocala. We have a farm out in Levy county (between Williston and Bronson) and I knew it got insanely cold out there.

All the temps east of Ocala were also much warmer so that must be the case.

-Krishna

Kailua, Oahu HI. Near the beach but dry!

Still have a garden in Zone 9a Inland North Central Florida (Ocala)

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Hi Krishna. Actually, there is a strip of land about 30 minutes west of Gainesville and Ocala which is always insanely cold then a weather event like this happens. It stretches almost as far south as Wesley Chapel, FL. Maybe that is why it was so cold in the patch you are referring to. I drove between 4 am and 6 am to Orlando this morning and it was 28 F the whole way until Claremont, including the area around Ocala. For some reason, my backyard thermometer said 31 F (and so did the weather.com "now" temperature for Gainesville), but when I drove out into the street my car thermometer said that it was 28 F. At Leesburg, the car thermometer showed 29 F, then suddenly 34 F at Clarement, and then 36 F by the time I entered the real Orlando suburbs. Now the sun is up and surely temperatures will rise rapidly. This weather event was very hyped up to be a catastrophic freeze, but it really was no big deal. It was quick. At midnight, I still hadn't dropped below freezing.

Thanks for the answer! I didn't realize that stretch went as far south as Ocala. We have a farm out in Levy county (between Williston and Bronson) and I knew it got insanely cold out there.

All the temps east of Ocala were also much warmer so that must be the case.

An easterly/NE flow developed overnight, and it took a few hours to stretch to my coast. So while I hit 31.3F as my low, it has been going up for the past hour now, to above 33F. I did not have as many stations going this time in the yard, but my front yard is usually 2 degrees warmer due to tree cover. We dodged a bullet, and now spring MUST COME!

Begonias are my thing. I've been growing and selling them for three decades, nearly two in Tampa Bay. NPR is an bhour N of St Pete, coast

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It's 33F and the sun is rising. No freeze, no frost. Now my biggest hope is that I didn't burn my coconuts with the christmas lights.

Keith 

Palmetto, Florida (10a) and Tampa, Florida (9b/10a)

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37.2 (forecasted 33). I'll take it

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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My low so far was 33 at 2:30am, and that was the most open part of my yard, the protected spots got down to 35. Shortly after 2:30am the winds picked up and the temps started to raise and we have been at 34-35 since then. I get the report from my wife what the temp is at sunrise.

I work in Naples and it was interesting to see the temperature differences on the way to work. as there really was not much of a difference. Usually when I go over the Caloosahatchee River the temps usually raise a couple degrees, not this morning. The further south I got the temps rose from 35 in Cape Coral to 37 in inland Naples, and 38 near the Gulf.

it is official, no freeze here, yes!!!!!! Thank you God. We now welcome Spring.

Even though the coldest part of my yard went down to 33, it only stayed there literally a few minutes and went back up.The majority of my yard hit a low of 35, so officially it was a 10A winter, but right on the border of 10B.

I hope everyone else made it unscathed.

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

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Temps have already zoomed up 6 degrees in the past hour to over 37F. Me thinks this is over, and a warm weekend is our reward for the cold. :-)) :hmm:

Begonias are my thing. I've been growing and selling them for three decades, nearly two in Tampa Bay. NPR is an bhour N of St Pete, coast

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33F here at Leu Gardens. After experiencing the 3 1980s freezes and even 1996, this is a non-event, no sleep loss or worrying. I don't worry unless the forecast is below 28F that day, not 2, 3 or 7 days out.

31F at my house in Altamonte Springs, about 12 miles NW of Orlando. I thought it would be a few degrees colder as NW of Orlando is a cold pocket.

No frost at either location.

Eric

Orlando, FL

zone 9b/10a

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31 on the Northern Florida Gulf Coast at 7am. Not too bad....ready for spring. Plants been inside since November....ready to go out at first of March.

Keith your welcome anytime.

Glad everyone was pretty much spared.....now we can get on with our Palmy Lives!

David Simms zone 9a on Highway 30a

200 steps from the Gulf in NW Florida

30 ft. elevation and sandy soil

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These events are great for finding where the "zones" (if you will) actually are.

Anna Maria Island bottomed out at 39 F. They were SEVEN degrees warmer than me 2 miles inland!

Keith 

Palmetto, Florida (10a) and Tampa, Florida (9b/10a)

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These events are great for finding where the "zones" (if you will) actually are.

Anna Maria Island bottomed out at 39 F. They were SEVEN degrees warmer than me 2 miles inland!

That is a degree warmer than what I saw in Naples this morning a mile from the Gulf!

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

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36F in south Tampa

Tampa, Interbay Peninsula, Florida, USA

subtropical USDA Zone 10A

Bokeelia, Pine Island, Florida, USA

subtropical USDA Zone 10B

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These events are great for finding where the "zones" (if you will) actually are.

Anna Maria Island bottomed out at 39 F. They were SEVEN degrees warmer than me 2 miles inland!

That is a degree warmer than what I saw in Naples this morning a mile from the Gulf!

This all really looks like a textbook example of a freeze. I'm going to gather the minimum temperatures for this morning right now.

Edited by Jimbean

Brevard County, Fl

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Generally about 30-31 in most of Daytona Beach town areas .. The official DB temp is at the airport , and colder than most of town ,

but with West breeze all night, about the same . Looks like NSB was about 1-2 deg warmer.

A sister's place out in West Flagler county had 27.6.

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Vero Beach 30

Ft. Peirce 33

Okeechobee 30

Stuart 35

Melbourne 34

Patrick AFB 38

Cape Canaveral 36

Shuttle landing 33

West Palm Beach 37

Homestead AFB 37

Miami 42

Ft. Lauderdale 39

E. Naples 35

New Smyrna Beach 32

W. Daytona 30

W. Ormond Beach 28

St. Augustine 28

Brevard County, Fl

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36F in south Tampa

OK Ray - you are the Master of the AO - what does are future hold ? Are we finally in the clear ? :bummed:

Coral Gables, FL 8 miles North of Fairchild USDA Zone 10B

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We got amazingly cold down here in the Lower Keys. NOAA forecaster chat over the last day or two has focused on the singular condition that gives us unusual cold, that winds must be squarely aimed here from NE so that we get the drainage of cold air from the peninsular landmass. Weather stations in my vicinity bottomed out at 47/48 and in Key West at 48/49. We were about four hours below 50F, KW about two hours.

I only worry about two plants, Cyrtostachys renda and Artocarpus altilis...I've been out to check them and of course it's probably too early to tell but there is just minor spotting (and that may not even be from cold) on a couple of leaves of the Artocarpus and no apparent immediate damage on the C. renda. I used to have a potted Artocarpus in Mississippi that would spot up immediately at 51F, but my two trees down here are in the ground and are the Ma'afala form, both are 6' youngsters. Perhaps they are slightly hardier than typical types, but the duration of cold is short here so perhaps that's why they here seem to tolerate it. There are large breadfruit in my neighborhood that got through the horrific 2010 (41F or so and extended chill) and also in Key West, though of course these all suffered defoliation and in some cases tip dieback, but look good as gold once again. We've had a couple of nights down to 53F this winter but the only damage I've seen over the course of the winter is some spotting on a small seedling I have planted out of Oncosperma horridum. There's a huge one (I believe the seed-parent of mine) at Fairchild so I am not worrying.

Michael Norell

Rancho Mirage, California | 33°44' N 116°25' W | 287 ft | z10a | avg Jan 43/70F | Jul 78/108F avg | Weather Station KCARANCH310

previously Big Pine Key, Florida | 24°40' N 81°21' W | 4.5 ft. | z12a | Calcareous substrate | avg annual min. approx 52F | avg Jan 65/75F | Jul 83/90 | extreme min approx 41F

previously Natchez, Mississippi | 31°33' N 91°24' W | 220 ft.| z9a | Downtown/river-adjacent | Loess substrate | avg annual min. 23F | Jan 43/61F | Jul 73/93F | extreme min 2.5F (1899); previously Los Angeles, California (multiple locations)

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N. Jacksonville 24

S. Jacksonville 28, 32

Fernandina Beach 32

Lake City 23

Gainsville 24

Ocala 23

Orlando 34

Sanford 33

The Villages 28

Leesburg 30

Zephyrhills 26

Brevard County, Fl

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10 degrees for me in my yard, I'm sure in the areas southwest of me with higher elevations hit single digits, as LeVert was saying. Still an 8A winter! :bummed:

Edited by smithgn
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We got amazingly cold down here in the Lower Keys. NOAA forecaster chat over the last day or two has focused on the singular condition that gives us unusual cold, that winds must be squarely aimed here from NE so that we get the drainage of cold air from the peninsular landmass. Weather stations in my vicinity bottomed out at 47/48 and in Key West at 48/49. We were about four hours below 50F, KW about two hours.

I only worry about two plants, Cyrtostachys renda and Artocarpus altilis...I've been out to check them and of course it's probably too early to tell but there is just minor spotting (and that may not even be from cold) on a couple of leaves of the Artocarpus and no apparent immediate damage on the C. renda. I used to have a potted Artocarpus in Mississippi that would spot up immediately at 51F, but my two trees down here are in the ground and are the Ma'afala form, both are 6' youngsters. Perhaps they are slightly hardier than typical types, but the duration of cold is short here so perhaps that's why they here seem to tolerate it. There are large breadfruit in my neighborhood that got through the horrific 2010 (41F or so and extended chill) and also in Key West, though of course these all suffered defoliation and in some cases tip dieback, but look good as gold once again. We've had a couple of nights down to 53F this winter but the only damage I've seen over the course of the winter is some spotting on a small seedling I have planted out of Oncosperma horridum. There's a huge one (I believe the seed-parent of mine) at Fairchild so I am not worrying.

Michael - The Cyrtostachys renda should be fine with the rapid warm up. The breadfruit is more ultra tropical, it may be unhappy but should survive IMO.

Coral Gables, FL 8 miles North of Fairchild USDA Zone 10B

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Lakeland 26

Tampa 34, 32

St. Petersburg 37

Clearwater 32

Brooksville 25

Winter Haven 32

Bartow 32

Cross City 21

Crystal River 26

Inverness 26

Brevard County, Fl

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Well, it appears I've now went three winters in a row as a zone 10a, albeit just by a hair. I recorded 30.1 degrees just out from the house and 34 degrees under canopy.

My blue sky vine growing on a trellis in the open yard got whacked on the top and some on the sides. My Brazilian red cloak shrub that is now over the roof's edge got burned on the very top.

No damage to any of my palms for now, and I don't anticipate any delayed latent damage.

It's no wonder I had frost on some flat surfaces this morning (described in an earlier post). Using my pocket digital thermometer, I touched the probe to the plastic top of a storage container I had out in the open yard and it recorded 24.3 degrees, while the ambient air temperature just above it was 31.4 degrees. I knew flat surfaces facing the sky gave up their heat fast and were colder than the ambient air; hence, why frost develops on flat surfaces even when the air temperature may be in the high 30s. But I was surprised the plastic surface was 24.3 degrees.

In any event, this was the latest cold and frost I've had in 17+ years living here. I hope this is the last of it for me this winter.

Mad about palms

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N. Jacksonville 24

S. Jacksonville 28, 32

Fernandina Beach 32

Lake City 23

Gainsville 24

Ocala 23

Orlando 34

Sanford 33

The Villages 28

Leesburg 30

Zephyrhills 26

As mentioned above the Ocala measurement (23) is at the airport which way below what the city was (more like 27/28). Surveying the damage outside the pothos is still green except for where exposed, alocasia lost leaves but stems are firm, and red passion flower vine is fine except the very upper/exposed layers which are crispy. All in all not too bad, just a typical winter freeze, albeit late.

-Krishna

Kailua, Oahu HI. Near the beach but dry!

Still have a garden in Zone 9a Inland North Central Florida (Ocala)

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