Highlanders Knew to Plant on Hills

Pollen Report

Tree Pollen levels are moderate with chilly nights suprressing nocturnal pollenation. Next spike up will begin Wednesday afternoon and last thru Friday as trees resume their pollen producing witchcraft!

Cold Frosty Nights

While frost was common across much of the region on Tuesday morning, low temperatures panned out exactly as expected (28-33), so no serious damage was done to fruit or ornamental trees.

Now we have one more frosty night to go thru with this one apt to be a tad colder in rural hollows protected from the wind (25-28) while still near 32 in the hills. That’s good news for local fruit growers who know to plant their fruit trees on the hillsides not in the deep valleys.

In fact, our Colonial ancestors showed their weather savvy when they planted their cherry, peach and apple trees on the same hills that my friends the Richards in Jackson and Furmans in Wheelersburg have been doing that for many years (40+).

On starry and still nights, the clear skies and light wind setting allows for the coldest air to settle to the valley floor below. This occurs due to the fact that cold air weighs more than warm air, so its natural tendency is to sink to low dips, hollows and valleys. As this occurs, the air left on top of hills (while still chilly) is somewhat warmer (or should I say less cold) than the air on the valley floor below.

It’s no wonder that since the days when Dr. Samuel Hildreth kept the first weather diary in the Ohio Valley near Marietta way back in the early 1800s, that our forefathers in Appalachia knew that to be a successful fruit grower, you had to be a Highlander!

Speaking of the Highlanders, up on the hill this evening Huntington High is hostingthe Cabell Midland Knights in a key baseball rivalry. First pitch temperatures will be near 60, but by 8 pm, up on the hill the temperature will chill to 50 degrees (bring a warm jacket or sweater) while at the same time down along route 10, the temperature will be some 5-10 degrees lower!