Southern California

[Jim in Los Altos]

Coldest night of the season! Went down to 33F here in the South Bay. Lots of rain on the way for later in the week.

[Cristóbal]

santa ana wind start yesterday very strong in afternoon and still strong now 12 am and 19.3 C / 66.7 F

low temperature new year day 15.7 C / 60.2 F

high 25.7 C / 78.3 F.

where i live we always have the very bad santa ana. if in the down town tijuana wind is 30 kilometers/hour here i have 70 - 80. today we have wind 80 kilometer/hour 50 miles/hour.

i think i have one the best and most warm microclimate by the ocean in our area. in january freeze 2007 i have low temperature of only 5C / 41 F.

i can have cocos nucifera in the outside no protection and there green all winter and growing.

so the palms dont freeze - but the damage of the wind many times a year is may be more worst.

[MattyB]

(LJG @ Dec. 31 2007,14:53)

QUOTE

Matt, when it comes to Plum trees. Are two too many or is one just not enough?

PS - I would have waited till Spring to plant Dypsis madagascarensis.  

Len, one is a "Satsuma" w/ dark red flesh, my wife's favorite.  The other is a "Santa Rosa" which is a pollinator of Satsuma.  The Santa Rosa is self fertile.  We learned the hard way by having just one type of plum at our old house.  If you don't have sufficient pollinator species then you get no, or very little fruit.

52F this morning.

[happ]

(Kim @ Jan. 02 2008,00:25)

QUOTE

My low last night was 39.7.  I don't know how you guys are all getting these lows in the 50s!

Kim

I think the question should be how are you getting lows in the 30's  ??? A quick check of RAWS data shows minimums for San Diego Bay this morning:

Coronado: 57F

Airport: 49F

North Island: 54F

La Jolla: 55F

Torrey Pines: 54F

Really nice today with temps in the 70's but it will turn cloudy/rainy for the rest of the week.  

LA: 55F

[Kim]

(happ @ Jan. 02 2008,11:37)

QUOTE

(Kim @ Jan. 02 2008,00:25)

QUOTE

My low last night was 39.7.  I don't know how you guys are all getting these lows in the 50s!

Kim

I think the question should be how are you getting lows in the 30's  ??? A quick check of RAWS data shows minimums for San Diego Bay this morning:

Coronado: 57F

Airport: 49F

North Island: 54F

La Jolla: 55F

Torrey Pines: 54F

Really nice today with temps in the 70's but it will turn cloudy/rainy for the rest of the week.  

LA: 55F

Happ, this morning I had 47.7, I'm always a bit cooler than the airport.  The 39.7 was for Jan. 1 when the airport recorded 44 (I think), but you guys on the south side of the San Gabriels had lows in the 50s.  What is it about being on top of a peninsula that is so cool (temperature-wise)?  Any insights?

And Happ, thanks for keeping us up-to-speed on the weather here, I appreciate it very much.

[happ]

(Cristóbal @ Jan. 02 2008,02:57)

QUOTE

santa ana wind start yesterday very strong in afternoon and still strong now 12 am and 19.3 C / 66.7 F

low temperature new year day 15.7 C / 60.2 F

high 25.7 C / 78.3 F.

where i live we always have the very bad santa ana. if in the down town tijuana wind is 30 kilometers/hour here i have 70 - 80. today we have wind 80 kilometer/hour 50 miles/hour.

i think i have one the best and most warm microclimate by the ocean in our area. in january freeze 2007 i have low temperature of only 5C / 41 F.

i can have cocos nucifera in the outside no protection and there green all winter and growing.

so the palms dont freeze - but the damage of the wind many times a year is may be more worst.

Hi Cristóbal

Thanks for the info on your climate [appears quite similar to parts of LA

I understand quite well that the super-dry winds may keep night temps up but the moisture they suck from plants is problematic   Invariably I under-water during winter due to the concern of keeping root systems warm.  My soil is fairly porous.  How do you deal with wind issues?

[happ]

(Kim @ Jan. 02 2008,15:08)

QUOTE

(happ @ Jan. 02 2008,11:37)

QUOTE

(Kim @ Jan. 02 2008,00:25)

QUOTE

My low last night was 39.7.  I don't know how you guys are all getting these lows in the 50s!

Kim

I think the question should be how are you getting lows in the 30's  ??? A quick check of RAWS data shows minimums for San Diego Bay this morning:

Coronado: 57F

Airport: 49F

North Island: 54F

La Jolla: 55F

Torrey Pines: 54F

Really nice today with temps in the 70's but it will turn cloudy/rainy for the rest of the week.  

LA: 55F

Happ, this morning I had 47.7, I'm always a bit cooler than the airport.  The 39.7 was for Jan. 1 when the airport recorded 44 (I think), but you guys on the south side of the San Gabriels had lows in the 50s.  What is it about being on top of a peninsula that is so cool (temperature-wise)?  Any insights?

And Happ, thanks for keeping us up-to-speed on the weather here, I appreciate it very much.

Thanks for the feedback, Kim.  I have devoted time studying the climates of San Diego county [looking at the daily wind/temp data.  It appears that the offshore [santa ana] winds are generally weaker in San Diego county due to various factors [including the north/south formation of the mountain [peninsular] range.  Interestingly I attended a New Year's Eve party on the roof of a 15 story hotel in San Diego & noticed the light offshore wind [it was almost balmy at midnight but noticeably cooler/calmer at ground level.

It is windier at night in Los Angeles due to the east/west direction & higher elevation of the surrounding mountains.

[Cristóbal]

Hi Cristóbal

Thanks for the info on your climate [appears quite similar to parts of LA

I understand quite well that the super-dry winds may keep night temps up but the moisture they suck from plants is problematic   Invariably I under-water during winter due to the concern of keeping root systems warm.  My soil is fairly porous.  How do you deal with wind issues?

--------------

Los Angeles/Pasadena

34° 10' N   118° 18' W

Elevation: 910'/278m

January Average Hi/Lo: 69F/51F

July Average Hi/Lo: 88F/66F

Average Rainfall: 19"/48cm

USDA 11/Sunset 23

*********************************************

hi happ, it depend every time we have the santa ana winds. many times they come after storm, or before. i check the soils. if soils are dry they get water before winds starts 1 day before. LOTS OF WATER. its more better i think for the palms to be full of water 1 day before the wind starts. if they say the winds to blow for long time when they finish the soils dry like before. humidity 3-5% happen here very often with santa anas.

your right about san diego. they dont get much wind from santa anas. but in tijuana we do some times very bad like los angeles.

east of tijuana theres a east-west valley in the mountains going all to the high mountains. in the middle is town of tecate. the highway to mexicali goes in this valley. when we have santa ana winds in tijuana the winds go in the valley get hot and go straight to tijuana.

i put a map of the valley from google earth, i mark red. i live wheres the red arrow. here theres also small east-west valley between the down town tijuana and the ocean.

for the santa ana winds i lose big part of roof of my house in 2002 when i live in east tijuana by where the valley goes into tijuana. i also lose 3 very big cocos nucifera with starting trunk i transplant only few weeks before.

[osideterry]

I haven't posted for a couple days. Hitting 39F every morning. Hoping this storm brings me back into the 40s again.

[MattyB]

54F last night

The large valley that Cristobal is illustrating is the approach for Tijuana International Airport.  The mountain to the north right where he's written the word Tecate is the reason that Brown Field never became our new airport here for San Diego.  They said the approach would be too steep.  But anyone who's ever been down there and flown into San Diego can see that our existing approach is probably worse.  The large military planes land at brown field all the time.  But now there's so many houses off the end of the runway (Ocean View Hills) that this will never be the new airport.  Just some background info.

[happ]

55F/12.7c

Night temps will not be a concern for the next few nights [while Motha Nature dumps incredible amounts of water onto all of California    concern is what follows these storms.  As usual, NWS’s post-storm [Monday-Wednesday] forecast is above freezing temps all areas except San Diego valleys [down to 31F/-0.5c   we know from experience that many areas report far colder minimums than forecast by National Weather Service

[Kim]

Overnight low was 49.1, some high clouds.  Looking forward to some rain, I hope.

[MattyB]

51.1 on both sensors last night.  Dug some ditches to drain water away from fill dirt awaiting the rains.

[happ]

52F/11.1c

Look for mild nights & chilly wet days into early next week.  Concern is "wet cold feet" for palm roots  

[MattyB]

Yeah, I haven't watered for a week just because of that.  Another reason heavy mulching is good.  In the winter, you can go weeks without watering because the soil stays evenly moist.  Less chance of rot.

[osideterry]

45F yesterday, 48F today. It was windy and rained all night, but no record amounts yet.

I've only hand-watered and turned my sprinklers on once since mid-November. The rain has come every 1-2 weeks.

[Patrick]

Yeah, Matt.

I'm gonna have to get me some of that mulch for my yard- I'm sure there'll be folks wanting to unload that stuff once spring hits....

[happ]

Appears today’s maximum occurred shortly after midnight as heavy rainfall moved in   almost 4 inches overnight

What's amazing is that there is no evidence of mud slides [even in the burn areas   the earth is so dry that it is being totally absorbed.  More rain tonight could result in mud slides/flash flooding as soil is close to saturation.

Week ahead should be well-above freezing w/ hier RH/dew points - Tuesday AM may be cold in low-lying areas.

Minimum: 55F/12.7c

Maximum: 58F/14.4c at 12:50AM

Currently: 57.8F/14.3c

Rainfall: 3.89"/0.91m

Rainyear [jul/jun]: 8.98"/2.43m

[BS Man about Palms]

I suspect I got about 1 1/2" inches so far. OS airport was reporting 1.18" at 9 am.

[Kim]

I think I heard the wind and rain commence here right around 2:30AM.  At noon today my newly-installed rain-gauge showed .7 inches of rain so far from this storm.  It's still raining off and on, but only lightly, and the wind let up fairly early in the day.  More to come?

[elHoagie]

I got 55mm of rain at my place last night.  The high temperature for yesterday (Fri) occurred just before midnight, the temperature started climbing around 6PM and didn't stop increasing until around 3AM....

[Kim]

(Kim @ Jan. 05 2008,13:53)

QUOTE

I think I heard the wind and rain commence here right around 2:30AM.  At noon today my newly-installed rain-gauge showed .7 inches of rain so far from this storm.  It's still raining off and on, but only lightly, and the wind let up fairly early in the day.  More to come?

Correction:  1.7 inches!

Total for storm as of 8:00 AM 1.9 inches, not raining this morning, calm and high cloud cover.  

Overnight low 51.4F.

[happ]

53F/11.6c

Picked up 0.52"/1.3cm of gentle overnight rainfall  

Is it foolish to fertilize?  ???

[Hollywood Palms]

Hey Happ,

I was taught to add fertilizer to moist, not wet soils, and add a small amount of water to help it settle in.

If the soil is bone dry, then I would water for 5 days, wait 2 days, fertilize on the 8th day with some-not a ton- of water.

Manure and compost: I'd wait until the end of February and then go hard with these two.

My big concerns are burning plants, washing away nutrients and "raising expectations"  for plants, when we could still get hit with a cold snap-cold for Southern California. I like to keep my tropicals going slowly until mid or late February.

David

[happ]

45F/7.2c.  Quite a sight seeing snow below 4000’/1.21m this morning on Mts.Wilson/San Antonio [hope someone took photos.

The storms have essentially come to an end in SoCal after leaving up to a foot of rain in some higher terrain.  This is the first time of over 10”/254mm of rainfall since June 2004  

The moisture and scattered clouds will boost night temps thru the week [NWS is forecasting minimums above 40F/4.4c for all areas in SoCal but colder microclimates could drop near freezing.

Nice warm-up this weekend  

[BS Man about Palms]

I netted over 3" of rain from this storm too!  Over the last month or so, we've had TWICE last years rainfall for the entire year!!  (SD)

[freakypalmguy]

My rain meter says about 3 inches O rain also. The sinkhole in my lower yard agrees. It almost sucked one of my Yucca rostrata's down in it. I keep tellin my wife that we need a tractor, ,,,maybe when her Brahea clara gets gobbled up she will be a little more simpathetic

[MattyB]

43.5F this morning under partly cloudy skies.

[osideterry]

3" for me also. I know because I was out draining my pool at 1am Monday morning. That's 2 time this year I've had to drain it due to heavy rain.

41F for me this morning. Aaahhh (think relaxing exhale, not screaming or crying).

[happ]

46F/7.7c

Relatively high humidity & scattered clouds are helping to keep night temps above 40F for all areas except mountains.

As the week progresses the airmass will dry with much lower RH/dew points & warmer temps [that could mean colder nights in wind-free locales

[osideterry]

(happ @ Jan. 08 2008,11:16)

QUOTE

46F/7.7c

colder nights in wind-free locales

Thanks for being a cold wet blanket, happ.  ::

[MattyB]

46.6F this morning, heavy fog.

[PalmGuyWC]

Foggy and cool in N. Calif........48.2F here at 4:40 PM and rain expected tonight and tomorrow. No sun all day. A typical English day. I'm headed for Palm Springs tomorrow.

Dick

[happ]

(PalmGuyWC @ Jan. 09 2008,19:36)

QUOTE

Foggy and cool in N. Calif........48.2F here at 4:40 PM and rain expected tonight and tomorrow. No sun all day. A typical English day. I'm headed for Palm Springs tomorrow.

Dick

Dick

I think you will enjoy Palm Springs  

NWS-San Diego Tabular Forecast 01-09-08 1325

PALM SPRINGS

Thursday: PTCLDY 44/70

Friday: SUNNY 45/71

Saturday: SUNNY 45/70    

Sunday: SUNNY  44/69  

Monday: SUNNY  44/71    

Tuesday: SUNNY  45/73    

Wednesday: SUNNY  44/71  

[PalmGuyWC]

Thanks Hap,

I've been to Palm Canyon before.  Any other palmy places to visit in PS? After PS for a couple of day, I'm headed for Vagas to pay my dues. Looks like nice weather both places, and a warming trend in N. Calif.

Dick

[BS Man about Palms]

42F this morn.... better than the 30's

[MattyB]

45F this morning, and clear.  Humidity is high.  Lots of dew on the ground.

[osideterry]

40.5F. Looks to stay in this range for the next 10 days at least.

[MattyB]

47F very nice.

[happ]

51F/10.5c

Wind tonight w/ mild temps