Cold Snap
March 15, 2017, Mary Hosier


Warm weather can turn cold in a snap in March! Can tulip plants handle early spring's up and down weather?

tulip garden emerges
Snow storm hits the northeastern states and provinces.
"Our emerging tulips are caught in a winter storm," in Cleveland, Ohio March 14th.

As of today we have 138 Test Gardens emerged. What will happen if it snows on the tulip plants, gardeners are wondering. Will they die?

"A very cold weather system has moved in with temperatures from 6F to about 25F, and we have emerging tulips. A winter storm is coming tomorrow, bringing significant snowfall that will blanket all of the gardens."
Hoosic Falls, New York on March 13.

"It's really cold today, but very warm last week. The tulips are just coming up."
New London, Minnesota on March 9th.

"We're wondering how the predicted late season blizzard will affect our tulip blooms."
Shillington, Pennsylvania on March 9th.

"We've had an unusually warm winter, and just this week had snow. Our tulips began blooming in a snow storm yesterday!"
St. Louis, Missouri on March 13th.

First signs of spring
Warsaw, Indiana

First signs of spring
Shillington, Pennsylvania

How Do Freezing Temperatures Affect Plants?

Brrrr...how will our tulips bloom after months of snow and cold? How do plants react to freezing temperatures? Put your labcoat on and try conducting these two cool experiments.

intro to plants and freezing temps
Map and Journal

What's happening in your garden?

Journey North Climate Garden Map: North America
line of emergence


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Next Update March 22, 2017