March has been welcoming Indiana like a lion with below-normal temperatures and a combination of above and below normal precipitation (see figure). Snowfall accumulated across the state ranging from less than 1” in the southwest and northwest to as much as 3-4” in the southeast part of Indiana. This precipitation has caused drought to be absent across the state, but monthly and seasonal climate outlooks from the Climate Prediction Center (https://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/) suggest an increasing chance of below normal precipitation over the next few months.  While temperatures will continue to gradually warm throughout spring, there are still significant risks for a late season freeze. The typical date of the last hard (28°F or less) freeze is late March in southern Indiana to late April in northeast Indiana. However, hard freezes have occurred as late as mid-April in the southeast counties into mid-May for northern Indiana. According to the Weather Prediction Center[Read More…]