Will it Be an Early Spring Planting Season in Minnesota?
It sure appears Spring is on the way with the warmer weather and sunshine this weekend. It gives you the thought that maybe we will have an early spring planting season with the weather cooperating for a change. After last spring with all the rain and prevented plant acres farmers do not want a repeat of last spring! Looking at the weather data from the Southern Research and Outreach Center maybe there is hope.
On February 28, 2020 there was only 6 inches of snow on the ground. The record snow depth for late February is around 27 inches. That is a lot of snow that will not have to melt and drain away! On February 24, 2020 the frost depth was 14 inches. Again that is not nearly as deep as some years when we saw water lines freezing up.
Finally, when you look at the soil temperature heading into March it could point to an early spring. The soil temperature at the 2 inch, 4 inch and 8 inch levels were all 30 to 31 degrees. That is quite a lot warmer than earlier this winter. Sure, it is all about the weather going forward but is looks like it is possible we could be set up for an early spring!