(Spirit Lake)– The abnormally warm weather for this time of year has many plants and trees thinking it’s spring when we’re still technically in the throes of winter.
Eldon Everhart, a Horticulturalist with the Iowa State University Extension Service says he’s had numerous reports of tulips, irises and other bulb plants starting to come up already. The concern is what might happen to those plants if the temperature suddenly plunges to what it could and should be like this time of year. Everhart says as long as the leaves don’t start to unfurl, the plants shouldn’t be harmed.
Everhart says he’s more concerned about trees…especially evergreens. He says the dry soil and dry winter winds may cause “winter kill”…a condition where the needles dry up and the tree turns brown.
