After a frontal passage on Wednesday, temperatures will drop into the the mid to upper 30’s around WNC, and that will bring the first frost to many around the area. below you can see the most recent NAM model run and its projected temperatures for Thursday morning. As you can see, most locations will dip into the 30’s for the first time since May!
Cover Sensitive Vegetation
This will be a situation where you will need to cover sensitive vegetation around WNC. These temperatures will effectively end your tomatoes plants, and only hearty veggies like onions and broccoli will live through this potential first frost. We will again see temperatures dip into the 30’s Friday morning as well, so keep in mind that you will need to start covering or bringing in sensitive vegetation on a regular basis.
Limited Rainfall Expected Through Weekend
As the front moves through late Tuesday and into Wednesday, some rainfall is possible.. but nothing significant. In fact most models indicate that less than a quarter inch is expected for most through the weekend. Below you can see the European model precipitation projection through the weekend, and the chance for significant rainfall looks to be disappearing. Unfortunately, this will not help with drought conditions that continue to worsen around WNC. Some locations saw a bit of relief through the weekend, but not enough rain to pull any locations out of their current drought situation. Any significant relief appears to be at least 7 days away, with no big rain makers set to move through.
Cool Temps Will Kickstart Fall Color
Beginning this morning we will see a kickstart to the fall color! These temperatures in the 40’s will allow the process to progress, and the color change should be officially on for most trees in the area. Elevations above 4500’ should begin to peak this week, and then in the next 2-2.5 weeks we will see peak down here in the valleys around Asheville!