Who's Looking Forward To Spring

[Cheese Rice]

That late? Last year my cherry tree was fully blossumed by the first week of April, and by the first week of May it was pretty much covered in leaves, as were most other trees around here.

Temperatures up here are usually a good 4-5.c lower than you guys and we had a way worse winter than London so maybe that was the reason, also the type of trees.

Edited February 11, 2010 by 10123

[Derp Patrol]

Temperatures up here are usually a good 4-5.c lower than you guys and we had a way worse winter than London so maybe that was the reason, also the type of trees.

Oh yeah, just looked at your location , but yes I do agree with you, it will probably be later this year compared to last year unless we get a long very mild spell

[Cheese Rice]

Oh yeah, just looked at your location , but yes I do agree with you, it will probably be later this year compared to last year unless we get a long very mild spell

Even if we suddenly hit very mild conditions for a long period it wouldn't affect the trees or any large plants as the damage has been done, last year the trees blossomed late even though we had quite a mild spell of weather after Feb with a distinct lack of cold in March and April.

[Snowyowl9]

It`s going to be a very very late spring this year for growth,I havn`t even seen any february winter blossum in Shrewsbury this time,I did last year.

Theres no grass about,it`s dead and yellow.

And after reading GP`s post we may have to wait until April for any growth.

1986 recall,there was actually more grass then once februarys early March snow cleared as there was a protection from frost,it really greened up and lush once the thaw came,even though that was a cold spring after.

[Liam J]

i feel spring will be late this year given the current and previous weather and synoptics to come, the transistion can be quite exciting winter-spring.

[Thundery wintry showers]

Also does anyone know what happen if we got -20 to -30 upper air in may? I would of thought there would be extremely heavy snow showers.

I don't think it's at all feasible- even the middle of the Arctic rarely gets far below -20 at the 850hPa level during May. My guess is that convection would probably be extreme as SSTs in May tend to be around the same as in November. In the Mays of 1979 and 1997, 850s approached -10C in the north and touched around -7C in the south, and the result in both cases was widespread snow showers. The night of the 6th/7th May 1997 had particularly pronounced shower activity over north-west England, which gave a snow cover to many parts of the region early in the morning.

Re. 2008, early April had quite a pronounced switch-around- a rarity in recent years- with 17.2C at Cleadon on the 3rd (it was probably warmer than that in some other parts of the country), followed by snow showers on the 6th and 7th.

I must admit I would welcome a brief snow event in May this year (preferably as part of a varied month and spring rather than a persistently cold one), we're long overdue one.

[kold weather]

Its days like this where I find myself longing for the return of those warm days with good sunshine levels. Still one thing that is becoming more noticeable now is the days becoming longer and this will become increasingly evident over the next month.

As I've said before on this thread, what I'm looking forward to above all else is the eventual return of 'warm' convection and also the build up of the Atlantic hurricane season...

[Thundery wintry showers]

I mentioned not so long ago that I'd probably prefer a climate where winters had a stronger sun, strong enough to generate homegrown convection, but colder airmasses (I think some continental interiors at 40 degrees N manage this, but with them being interiors the airmasses may often be too dry to support much convection).

Then we'd get the equivalent of "warm" convection all year round. I often find "westerly" spells quite tedious in winter in eastern England because the shelter tends to stop any Atlantic-generated convection from getting across.

[Spurry]

We've entered a phase of nothingness in my opinion , theres no sign of any prolonged wintry weather, just dull grey cold and occaisonally wintry interchanged with rainy weather ...this morning i was at my sons rugby training and i was the coldest i've been all winter, yet it was bright and dry!!!!Please, Please Please let spring start to appear in the next few weeks , i just want to be able to feel warm and sit outside without risking hypothermia...i've had enough of feeling cold for one year

[Derp Patrol]

We've entered a phase of nothingness in my opinion , theres no sign of any prolonged wintry weather, just dull grey cold and occaisonally wintry interchanged with rainy weather ...this morning i was at my sons rugby training and i was the coldest i've been all winter, yet it was bright and dry!!!!Please, Please Please let spring start to appear in the next few weeks , i just want to be able to feel warm and sit outside without risking hypothermia...i've had enough of feeling cold for one year

Totally agree there. For me it's really unpleasant at the moment.. i'm longing for some warmth and I think that we will soon enter into some milder weather as we are now past the coldest part of winter. The sun feels warmer on the skin, but the temperatures are still reachin maybe 5C at best. I can't wait for the first 15C!

[SP1986]

Even if we suddenly hit very mild conditions for a long period it wouldn't affect the trees or any large plants as the damage has been done, last year the trees blossomed late even though we had quite a mild spell of weather after Feb with a distinct lack of cold in March and April.

Native trees are unlikely to get damaged anyway, they've seen it all before.

If -6C damages a native tree I'll eat my shoe.

Exotic plants however yes.

[Milhouse]

Totally agree there. For me it's really unpleasant at the moment.. i'm longing for some warmth and I think that we will soon enter into some milder weather as we are now past the coldest part of winter. The sun feels warmer on the skin, but the temperatures are still reachin maybe 5C at best. I can't wait for the first 15C!

I'm longing for warmth so much that i'd even take it if it was accompanied by wind and rain. A warm settled spell would be excellent but at the moment i dont care how we get something milder as long as we get it.

Tentative signs of things warming up a touch as we go into March. As they should i suppose.

[Thundery wintry showers]

When people talk of "settled" weather, there are different definitions of "settled" floating about- does this mean "dry sunny and anticyclonic", "high pressure", or just "no rain", or just "not changing frequently"? I guess in most cases it probably means high pressure (that's certainly my biggest association with the term) but whenever I see Model Output Discussion in the summer talking of "settled" weather I always have to check out the models to re-check what is meant by it- after all, settled spells range from the heatwaves in the likes of Augusts 1947, 1976 & 1995 to the dull drizzly cold third week of March 1996.

I also get the feeling when some say they're hoping for Spring, what they really mean is what they wish spring would be, in most cases constant high pressure and 15C in March rising to 25C in May. That's more like a dry sunny summer, not a spring. Spring is the season of transition from winter to summer and spring days include the likes of the sunshine-and-snow-showers northerly, and the nithering E'ly with stratus and 7C.

A lot of people do hope for summer at this time of year (indeed some do all year around lol!) and it's not an illegitimate view by any means, but I certainly suggest that it's wrong to think of spring as being like summer, because outside of the "April 2007" level of extremity you're always going to be disappointed.

[Bottesford]

Just to have temps above 6c again would be nice. Sick to death of grey skies with temps 1 to 5c which a majority of winter seems to be.

Cold, sunny and frosty weather is great but this unending grey nothingness with a nagging drizzly wind only broken up with brief sunny spells is vile and the main reason I am not a winter person. This kind of weather is the default for winter around here so I find it hard to get excited about the season.

The days are definitely getting longer now - 4pm is complete daylight even under cloudy skies with 5pm not far off. Sunset is 1714 today (compare 1551 at solstice) and solar max altitude is now 24.1 degrees (compare 13.7 degrees at solstice). (See: http://www.timeanddate.com for this info for your location).

Once sunset hits around 7pm I feel content again - which continues as we move towards 2134 sunset...

[Richard Lake]

The answer to the thread is still no.

[Snowyowl9]

Spring warmth most definate on hold with frosts most nights,although I think there will be some pleasant fresh air sunshine next week and little in the way of wintry showers here from wednesday as the flow is so slack.

http://www.wzkarten.de/pics/Rtavn2417.png

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[Derp Patrol]

Just to have temps above 6c again would be nice. Sick to death of grey skies with temps 1 to 5c which a majority of winter seems to be.

Cold, sunny and frosty weather is great but this unending grey nothingness with a nagging drizzly wind only broken up with brief sunny spells is vile and the main reason I am not a winter person. This kind of weather is the default for winter around here so I find it hard to get excited about the season.

The days are definitely getting longer now - 4pm is complete daylight even under cloudy skies with 5pm not far off. Sunset is 1714 today (compare 1551 at solstice) and solar max altitude is now 24.1 degrees (compare 13.7 degrees at solstice). (See: http://www.timeanddate.com for this info for your location).

Once sunset hits around 7pm I feel content again - which continues as we move towards 2134 sunset...

It will be sometime in late September/early October before you see the sun setting at around 7pm again! In about 5-6 weeks time, the sun will be setting at about 6:30pm, before we at long last enter BST, and it sets at 7:30pm ! Can't wait.

Regarding earlier posts, of course I would love to have a summer like Spring, although summery conditions are unlikely untill May. Extremes do not matter for me too much, as long as it is pleasant and sunny. For example, last March was very pleasant without reaching any extremes, just 13-16C on most days where the average is about 10C-13C. During April, the first spanish plumes can start to appear bringing temperatures into the low 20s (higher in 2007) But what I like is that in Spring it can be pleasant and sunny, while at the same time you can start to feel the first signs of summer.

[Alex95]

When people talk of "settled" weather, there are different definitions of "settled" floating about- does this mean "dry sunny and anticyclonic", "high pressure", or just "no rain", or just "not changing frequently"? I guess in most cases it probably means high pressure (that's certainly my biggest association with the term) but whenever I see Model Output Discussion in the summer talking of "settled" weather I always have to check out the models to re-check what is meant by it- after all, settled spells range from the heatwaves in the likes of Augusts 1947, 1976 & 1995 to the dull drizzly cold third week of March 1996.

I also get the feeling when some say they're hoping for Spring, what they really mean is what they wish spring would be, in most cases constant high pressure and 15C in March rising to 25C in May. That's more like a dry sunny summer, not a spring. Spring is the season of transition from winter to summer and spring days include the likes of the sunshine-and-snow-showers northerly, and the nithering E'ly with stratus and 7C.

A lot of people do hope for summer at this time of year (indeed some do all year around lol!) and it's not an illegitimate view by any means, but I certainly suggest that it's wrong to think of spring as being like summer, because outside of the "April 2007" level of extremity you're always going to be disappointed.

Summery spells in late spring aren't that uncommon, I can recall quite a few examples (mostly in May of course, and April 2007). Its the people who hope for this in March who get disappointed, March can sometimes be as cold as February, and you can get just as many cold snaps as any winter month, but they tend to be toned down slightly and the sun is stronger of course. I like changeable springs which have some cold weather early on in the season, mixed with some more pleasant, sunny weather, then towards May I want the first very warm spell of weather, and by that I mean where the temperature widely breaches 20°C, and 25°C in the south, but I would also want some cool, bright spells to make the month more interesting. In other words I want Spring to be bright, with temperatures fluctuating. Oh, and some good convection wouldn't go a miss

[Thundery wintry showers]

I think my views on a good spring are similar to yours, but I get the impression that we're in a minority- refreshing to see that it's maybe not as small a minority as I'd thought.

[LomondSnowstorm]

I think my views on a good spring are similar to yours, but I get the impression that we're in a minority- refreshing to see that it's maybe not as small a minority as I'd thought.

I also agree. Sunshine and showers at 4C is as good as unbroken sunshine at 18C in April, and preferably both in a short space of time! I also like to be able to take a trip up north on the train like I did in early April 2008 to find some snow still falling and lying between Blair Atholl and Slochd, just to wave the snow and cold one last goodbye.

[cheeky_monkey]

i think spring is the season when people get caught out with clothing and what to wear...with swings in temps it can warm and sunny one day and cold and sunny the next...hands up those who have gone out on a sunny spring day in a t shirt then realised 10 minutes later...damn that was a mistake?..i know i have.

[Derp Patrol]

Yes, I have done that. March is a prime time for this to happen for me. I remember last year after playing football on a sunny morning when it was about 12C, when I finished I was boiling and after I showered I put on shorts and a T shirt, only to replace the shorts soon after with trousers! Generally though I don't wear a jumper after the end of March, or earlier if it is a good warm start to Spring.

[Milhouse]

Today almost felt like spring. However only when the sun was out and there was no wind at all. I thought if it can feel quite nice, albeit momentarily, at 5.5c. just think how nice it will feel at 15.5c.

One think i've noticed of late is how much brighter the sun is and how its beginning to feel that bit warmer when youre exposed to it. Hard to believe it'll be the Spring Equinox in just over a month.

Back to reality though and were forecast just 2c and sleet tomorrow. Another horrendously drab and depressing day to come :unsure:

[mushymanrob]

We've entered a phase of nothingness in my opinion , theres no sign of any prolonged wintry weather, just dull grey cold and occaisonally wintry interchanged with rainy weather ...this morning i was at my sons rugby training and i was the coldest i've been all winter, yet it was bright and dry!!!!Please, Please Please let spring start to appear in the next few weeks , i just want to be able to feel warm and sit outside without risking hypothermia...i've had enough of feeling cold for one year

couldnt agree more .... i know cold is popular here as people want snow.... ok, i can understand that, but what we have pleases no one. no real snow, no mild, its just raw.

Native trees are unlikely to get damaged anyway, they've seen it all before.

If -6C damages a native tree I'll eat my shoe.

Exotic plants however yes.

precisely... in fact native trees/shurbs need a decent frost for the blossoms to set. take sallow for eg... a mild winter = hardly any nice lemon flowers in early spring, hard winter = loads!

tbh i think the only thing that effects native trees is lack of water ... temps certainly dont.

[Thundery wintry showers]

couldnt agree more .... i know cold is popular here as people want snow.... ok, i can understand that, but what we have pleases no one. no real snow, no mild, its just raw.

Not quite- there are people who would be pleased with the number of marginal snow events that are possible in the south over the coming days, the possible convective event for Thursday etc, and also those who would be pleased with the crisp, bright showery type of outlook for Scotland, Ireland and northern England.

By all means people are perfectly entitled to dislike whatever weather they like, but comments like "this pleases no one" by implication attribute opinions to everyone else which they may well not have- it's effectively dismissive of said alternative opinions.