Spring Gets One Last Blast Of Winter

We may only be four days away from the first of May, but Old Man Winter isn’t going away quietly. Early Wednesday morning the temperatures dropped and the rain that was falling quickly turned to ice and then snow, creating a blanket of white across the landscape. At Nature’s Edge Gardening Center where they were about to kick off their spring open house, the wintery weather has put the spring planting season on hold.

The greenhouses at Nature’s Edge are filled with the sights and smells of spring, with an array of bright colored flowers cascading across the tables ready to be transplanted into waiting flower beds. However, it is a drastic contrast outside where shrubs and trees are already bloom.

The snow on the trees may make it look more like a Christmas card, but there is a hidden benefit to this late spring snow.

With the temperatures dipping down into the low twenties, having the snow can provide much needed insulation for those sprouts and buds.

Even the City of Bemidji was caught off guard by the sudden blast of winter. City engineers started summer road construction projects weeks ahead of schedule because of the warm spring. Now the projects are temporarily paused and the equipment sits idle.

Despite the cold and snow, even the city says that there is a silver lining to this late winter blast. They say that the cold temps will freeze up the moisture from the heavy rains and will help dry the work sites out faster.

City engineers say that the road work shouldn’t be delayed more than a day. As for Nature’s Edge Garden Center, they still plan to hold their spring open house this weekend.