Some places in Illinois have been snowier in March than April. About the only noteworthy snowfall of February occurred in a band from Peoria to Hoopeston. So far in March, snow has pushed farther south, all the way to the Ohio River. At the same time, areas in northern Illinois have received substantially more snow in March than February. For example, Chicago O’Hare reported only a trace of snow in February and 7.8 inches of snow in March through this morning.
And temperatures have been more January or February like in nature for the past few days. Here is the average low temperature for the last five days in Illinois. The shades of blue from north to south represent average low temperatures in the range of 10 to 20 degrees in northern Illinois, 20 to 25 degrees in much of central Illinois and 25 to 30 degrees in southern Illinois.
I have not seen any reports yet, but I would image the combination of a warm February and cold March raises the potential for freeze damage to certain crops including winter wheat, alfalfa, apples, and peaches. Hopefully, my beloved Calhoun peaches survived this (my father’s side is from Calhoun County).
