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Dry, warm February includes unwanted buzz

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED FEB 11, 2020

With so many bulbs and other plants blooming, it might as well be spring. (Photo: Kathy Morrison)

Mosquitoes out early; is drought on horizon?

Unusually warm and dry temperatures may make it feel like spring, but they also bring notes of caution from Sacramento weather watchers.

Monday’s high of 73 degrees tied a Sacramento record, with 72 degrees forecast for Tuesday. By contrast, our “normal” for early February daytime highs is 60 degrees.

What’s more alarming is the lack of moisture. So far, February – usually among the rainiest months – has been bone dry. Historically in Sacramento, this month averages more than 3.5 inches of precipitation.

With such dry weather, forecasters have been mentioning the dreaded “D” word – drought. After tracking almost normally, our rain year has fallen far off pace. According to the National Weather Service, Sacramento Executive Airport reports 6.14 inches total rain since Oct. 1, the start of our rain year. Last year, it measured 10.48 inches through Feb. 10. “Normal” to date is 11.19 inches.

What’s worse is that 6 inches is only a third of the 18-inch “normal” rain year total. That means new rounds of conservation measures may be coming soon.

According to the NWS, the driest Sacramento February on record was way back in 1899 – only .04 inches. In more recent decades, February 1995 saw only .19 inches, but that followed widespread flooding in January of that year.

A consequence of all this warmth: Mosquitoes. They’re out early – and hungry. According to the Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District, these early biters are a species that overwintered in rice fields that surround Sacramento. This warmth woke up the bugs, and they’re now aggressively seeking first blood. They’ll follow people and pets indoors in search of a meal.

Don’t let these pests make themselves at home. Empty any standing water outdoors. Wear long sleeves and long pants when working in the garden.

For more mosquito-busting tips: Fightthebite.net .

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Keywords:

vector control Sacramento winter weather drought February record highsm weather mosquitoes gardening National Weather Service early spring rainfall

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Garden Checklist for week of Sept. 15

Make the most of the cool break this week – and get things done. Your garden needs you!

* Now is the time to plant for fall. The warm soil will get cool-season veggies off to a fast start.

* Keep harvesting tomatoes, peppers, squash, melons and eggplant.

* Compost annuals and vegetable crops that have finished producing.

* Cultivate and add compost to the soil to replenish its nutrients for fall and winter vegetables and flowers.

* Fertilize deciduous fruit trees.

* Plant onions, lettuce, peas, radishes, turnips, beets, carrots, bok choy, spinach and potatoes directly into the vegetable beds.

* Transplant cabbage, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower as well as lettuce seedlings.

* Sow seeds of California poppies, clarkia and African daisies.

* Transplant cool-weather annuals such as pansies, violas, fairy primroses, calendulas, stocks and snapdragons.

* Divide and replant bulbs, rhizomes and perennials.

* Dig up and divide daylilies as they complete their bloom cycle.

* Divide and transplant peonies that have become overcrowded. Replant with "eyes" about an inch below the soil surface.

* Late September is ideal for sowing a new lawn or re-seeding bare spots.

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