With today being the first official day of spring, many people will soon be turning their thoughts to their yards and gardens — and to cultivating flowers and greenery to beautify their surroundings.
Plants have already had a good head start with a warmer-than-normal winter. December, January and February averaged out to be a full degree warmer than they usually are, said Environment Canada meteorologist Matt MacDonald.
“The month of February, particularly, was very warm,” he said. “It was the fourth-warmest February since records began.”
El Niño, warm ocean water that affects weather, has been the big reason for the mild winter, MacDonald said, adding that it has been the strongest El Niño on record.
The forecast for this spring indicates a high probability of continuing above-normal temperatures. Today’s forecast to start the season calls for showers and a high of about 11 C, with the showers continuing through the week.
As always, the advent of spring follows the annual Flower Count, which was held March 3 to 9 and came in at record of almost 26 billion blooms. The 41st annual count, a light-hearted effort to tout the region’s enviable, garden-friendly climes, outdid the previous record of about 18 billion blooms from 2015.
Colwood was the top municipality in the count for the third consecutive year with a total of 13.4 billion flowers tallied.
