Saturday, April 30, 2011

April temperatures

We desperately need rain!!!

Fri
1
OBSERVED

Hi 88°F
Lo 47°F
Precip (in)
0in.

Sat
2
OBSERVED
Hi 89°F
Lo 53°F
Precip (in)
0in.

3
OBSERVED
Hi 83°F
Lo 56°F
Precip (in)
0in.

4
OBSERVED
Hi 79°F
Lo 46°F
Precip (in)
0in.

5
OBSERVED
Hi 89°F
Lo 44°F
Precip (in)
0in.

6
OBSERVED
Hi 82°F
Lo 56°F
Precip (in)
0in.

7
OBSERVED
Hi 76°F
Lo 49°F
Precip (in)
0in.

8
OBSERVED
Hi 75°F
Lo 47°F
Precip (in)
0in.

9
OBSERVED
Hi 66°F
Lo 39°F
Precip (in)
0in.

10
OBSERVED
Hi 58°F
Lo 38°F
Precip (in)
0in.

11
OBSERVED
Hi 76°F
Lo 27°F
Precip (in)
0in.

12
OBSERVED
Hi 83°F
Lo 41°F
Precip (in)
0in.

13
OBSERVED
Hi 80°F
Lo 38°F
Precip (in)
0in.

14



OBSERVED



Hi 76°F
Lo 45°F


Precip (in)
0in.
15



OBSERVED



Hi 81°F
Lo 38°F


Precip (in)
0in.
16



OBSERVED



Hi 90°F
Lo 36°F


Precip (in)
0in.

17



OBSERVED



Hi 87°F
Lo 45°F


Precip (in)
0in.
18



OBSERVED



Hi 86°F
Lo 53°F


Precip (in)
0in.
19



OBSERVED



Hi 86°F
Lo 54°F


Precip (in)
0in.
20



OBSERVED



Hi 86°F
Lo 43°F


Precip (in)
0in.
21



OBSERVED



Hi 88°F
Lo 50°F


Precip (in)
0in.
22



OBSERVED



Hi 86°F
Lo 49°F


Precip (in)
0in.
23



OBSERVED



Hi 84°F
Lo 49°F


Precip (in)
0in.

24



OBSERVED



Hi 81°F
Lo 52°F


Precip (in)
0in.
25



OBSERVED



Hi 82°F
Lo 49°F


Precip (in)
0in.
26



OBSERVED



Hi 83°F
Lo 50°F


Precip (in)
0in.
27



OBSERVED



Hi 82°F
Lo 46°F


Precip (in)
0in.
28



OBSERVED



Hi 93°F
Lo 43°F


Precip (in)
0in.
29



OBSERVED



Hi 90°F
Lo 45°F


Precip (in)
0in.
Today



Hi -
Lo 47°F


Precip
0 %







FORECAST: Updated Apr 30 08:13 p.m. MT

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Cucumber seeds

I planted about eight cucumber seeds near the beans this morning. I hope the big birds don't eat them, though. The birds here have attacked the bean sprouts with a vengeance this year. The dry weather isn't helping them grow strong, either.

I bought an Anna Smith apple tree on Friday, to be used as a polinator for the lone apple tree in our back yard. I'll get that tree dug in before the monsoon.

What we need is bird netting around the crops.

The Princess tree is now being invaded by large cutter bees that are attracted to the lilac blossoms. The bees scare away the butterflies.

Monday, April 11, 2011

The last of the cold spell

I think I can say for sure now what plants survived the deep freeze and which ones did not. Both beavertail are dead and oozing black liquid. The bottlebrush is dead. The oleander on the west side of the house look crispy. The potato shrub looks dead, too.

Life is coming back to the tacoma stans. The Mexican sage is also showing growth. The Russian sage is reproducing new stems nearby. Once I remove all the dead leaves I've left on the shrubbery for frost protection the front yard will look nice.

One thing I have to do, though, is set up the ScareCrow so that the neighborhood cats stop coming to the front yard bird feeder. I'm really getting tired of seeing them waiting for the birds to fly down and feed.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Wet and cold for tonight

We didn't get the big storm as forecasted as that stayed north of Tucson, but it's drizzling and colder. I just got done covering all the plants. The citrus trees are all inside.
_______________________________________________________________
Highlights of weather affecting Southern Arizona this weekend
Posted: Apr 07, 2011 3:52 PM MST
Updated: Apr 09, 2011 3:59 PM MST
Reporter/Meteorologist: April Madison

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Widespread showers moved through southern Arizona Saturday. Rain totals ranged from a few hundredths of an inch, to about 0.20 inches in most locations by 3 PM.

Some observers on MT. Lemmon reported 3.5 to 4 inches of snow had fallen by noon Saturday, with 2 inches reported at the MT. Lemmon Fire Department. Light snow was also been reported at Oracle and Saddlebrooke, but no accumulation.

The bulk of the rain showers is expected to end around 9 or 10 PM Saturday night, though some lingering showers may occur later across Greenlee, Graham, and far eastern Cochise counties. A Winter Weather Advisory remains through 11 PM Saturday night for the mountain areas. Snow levels will be around 4000 to 4500 feet, with any accumulation expected to be above 6000 feet.

Temps are expected to dip well into the 30's Saturday night, into early Sunday morning. But most locations from Tucson eastward and southward, are expected to stay above freezing.

A strong warm, drying trend will return Sunday through next week.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Another freeze due in this weekend?

This almost seems odd to hear this, but it's black and white.

Highlights of weather affecting Southern Arizona this weekend

Updated: Apr 07, 2011 8:03 PM MST
Chief Meteorologist: Erin Christiansen

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Strong south to southwest winds are forecast to develop over southern Arizona Friday afternoon and continue into Friday evening. A wind advisory has been issued from Tucson eastward. Areas of blowing dust are once again possible, even in locales farther west not in the wind advisory.

Critical fire weather conditions could be met briefly over Cochise County. The limiting factor will be whether humidities will drop below the 15 percent threshold for any significant amount of time.

http://www.kgun9.com/global/story.asp?s=14406430

Cooler air and rain are expected to spread east across the region Saturday.

Precipitation amounts will range from less than a tenth of an inch in the southeast corner of the state to nearly one half inch farther northwest in parts of Pima, Pinal, Graham and Greenlee Counties. Snow levels could drop as low as 4000 feet north but should remain above 6000 feet in southeast Cochise County.

Strong and gusty winds are possible again Saturday, especially east of Tucson.

Saturday night, the first widespread freeze in the past 2 to 3 weeks could occur over the lower elevations of Graham, Greenlee, Santa Cruz and Cochise Counties with temperatures currently forecast to drop into the upper 20s to lower 30s.

Monday, April 4, 2011

More seedlings coming up

Today I noticed the mesquite tree is in bloom! The palo verde is still barren, but there is new growth coming up from the Mexican sage, verbana and Russian sage. The crape myrtle is still looking dead, though.

I'm starting to see ants in the front yard, too.

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Severe drought lingering

We had a short scare earlier today when a brush fire a few miles north of us burst out. The firefighters came quickly to the scene and by 1:30pm the skies were clear again. The fire was just a few acres off Ramsey road in town.

My oleanders are parched, though. I spent 30 minutes soaking the east-side shrubs. The water quickly trickled into the dry soil without ever pooling as more saturated soil would show. There is life in these shrubs afterall and I see new growth coming, just as I see new growth out of the palm trees. People here are starting to trim their dead shrubs and remove the dead cacti. What remains will most likely fall victim to mold or cactus bugs.

The Princess tree's purple bell blossoms are out. Beans are coming up. Red and Russian Sage in the front yard are coming up.

It hit a record high today, almot approaching 90F with a humidity of 15% at 2pm.