[Asy]

I'm from the mid-west, though currently living in Florida. I was wondering about the weather in Connecticut. In the mid-west it is grey, grey, grey a lot of the time. I love the seasons and I don't mind cold weather, I just got tired of so many months of grey going along with it. I'm wondering if it's like that there too? Also, is there a lot of snow or is it more of a bitter cold without a lot of precipitation? All comments would be welcome.

[skytrekker]

The weather this spring thus far in the northeast has been horrible- cold, with temps below normal. Precipitation has been deficient up this point. So it least there has been a fair amount of sunny days- however the weather today is cold and raining- it may reach 53 Saturday, with some sun. Friday will be cloudy and chilly in the 40s- more rain is due for Sunday, and unsettled weather into next week.

I fear it will become very warm, even hot very quickly soon.
Compared to the upper Midwest, weather here on average will be milder in the winter, and slightly cooler in the summer (being modified by the close proximity of the Atlantic ocean) Southeastern Connecticut around New London/Groton is milder in the winter and cooler in the summer then Hartford located inland by about 40 miles or so. It may be 90 in Hartford and 80 in New London- and in the winter Hartford may get 6" of snow and it will rain in New London.

A sea breeze in Hartford will cool temps till the end of June however-

The USDA zone here is about the same as Louisville Kentucky- (zone 6) with about the same number of temperatures at or near zero in the winter. 90 degree temps here average about 20 days a year- perhaps slightly less then Louisville. While New Haven CT is a zone 7- about the same as southern KY and northern Tenn.

Average snowfall in Hartford is 42" a year- this year it was 22".
Yearly precipitation is around 45".

However-with climate change- the weather has become milder in the last 30 years, with more extremes in temperature and precipitation- considered a classic harbinger of global warming.

Interesting site on New England's climate in decades to come- http://www.climatechoices.org/ne/

[maggiemay]

New Haven is Zone 7?! Athens, GA is a 7, I expected CT to be at least a 6 everywhere. Just curious. Avid gardener.

[acornsower]

Down here on the shores of Long Island Sound it seldom goes below zero in the winter, although the dampness can give you the shivers even at 40 degrees. There are Southerm magnolias (magnolia grandiflora, crape myrtles and camellias growing out in the open, and one house in Lordship, CT--about 200 feet back from the shore--has an eight or nine foot palm tree growing unprotected through the winters for a number of years now. Almost everybody has a mimosa tree in the backyard which give a whiff of the tropics with their blossoms all summer long.

I've lived in the midwest (Cleveland) and the oceanic winds seem to be what prevents Connecticut from getting those interminable 'gray periods.'

[skytrekker]

Maggiemay

'Hotlanta' is a zone 8 I believe- while Savannah nearly a zone 9
(Avid Gardener myself!)

The CT shoreline is a zone 7 generally speaking- but also realize that this is for absolute lows- not duration of cold- that can make a difference.

In my Garden I grew two Trachycarpus Fortunei (Very cold tolerant fan palms of Asiatic origin) here in Vernon (zone 6) Over the winter-They survived! Although I did cover them- but did not add heat- I also have a Giant Sequoia here- that has survived 2 winters.
However the lowest temp here was 1.3 degrees this past winter-so theoretically thats a zone 7 (low of 0-10)

Acorn another palm grower here in CT!!??

[JViello]

Originally Posted by Asy

I'm from the mid-west, though currently living in Florida. I was wondering about the weather in Connecticut. In the mid-west it is grey, grey, grey a lot of the time. I love the seasons and I don't mind cold weather, I just got tired of so many months of grey going along with it. I'm wondering if it's like that there too? Also, is there a lot of snow or is it more of a bitter cold without a lot of precipitation? All comments would be welcome.

I - ahem *HAD* in-laws in the Midwest (Western IL - Quad City area) and spent a fair amount of time there in the winter months.

I can tell you, I never saw weather so cold, or sky's so grey as I did in the Mid-West. CT is nothing like that. We have our moments but we are much more moderated by the ocean so that super cold bitter North wind you get out there doesn't really exist here. (CT people reading this, yea the wind kicks up here but until you get some of that Canadian air blowning down on you - you have NO IDEA what cold it like I can assure you. I don't know how they live in that.)

We don't have the extremes you see in the MidWest either with stupidly hot Summer days with bitterly cold Winter days all in one year. It's much more tempered.

And yes, we do have a decent amount of sunny days in the Winter...even if it is cold outside.

There is an old saying in New England. "Don't like the weather...wait a minute" and it's true. This Spring sucks. Last fall was wonderful, this Winter was super easy. It really is a box of chocolates.

[wavehunter007]

I have to agree with all above...Connecticut and the Tri-State area (NY/NJ/CT) are sunny more often in winter than the Mid-West states. I too, spent a winter in Cleveland - and the snow there comes early and stays late. As other posters have noted, heavy snow here along the Connecticut coast is pretty rare. Here in Saybrook, the snow season is really confined to the period from late December to mid March. According to weathernet, Cleveland averages 56-inches of snow a season, while Bridgeport (the only NWS weather station on the coast) averages 25-inches of snow. I'll bet here in southeast Connecticut we get even less than that. Many people in southeast Connecticut use a broom instead of a shovel to move snow.

But if you have never spent a summer on the East Coast - the old Bermuda High can make Connecticut feel like Thailand in deep summer (lol).

Good luck.

[sugarlips]

Having lived in CT and currently living in midwest (Minneapolis area), I can say for certain that the weather in CT is much more mild. It is not as cold in the winter and not as hot and humid in the summer. I have never, ever been as cold in my life as I have in my years here in MN. There are days that the wind chill literally makes me cry. Also, it is grey for the entire month of February here while in CT there were grey days scattered about with beautiful blue skies inbetween. Like other posters have mentioned, the weather in CT can be unpredictable.

Whenever I hear people complain about the weather in CT, I have to laugh. When I hear people leaving CT for places like NC and AZ, I shake my head. I know it's not paradise...CT is expensive (most places that aren't pricey don't offer a decent quality of living)...many of the cities have issues (what city doesn't) but CT has more good qualities than any other area of the country that I have lived.

[maggiemay]

I had a good laugh over all of the talk about winter in the Midwest. My husband is from Iowa so I definitely know what you mean. But, none of that compares to -40 in Fairbanks, AK, with about 6 hours of "daylight" per day. (I placed daylight in quotes because it is still dark enough all day that you drive with your lights on.) Still, I found the winters there brought beautiful gifts like the auroras.

With the right gear, the dogs and I could still go out for a brisk (I mean brisk!) walk up to -20.

Dark skies. Minus 40. That's winter.

Regarding the gardening zones: some maps I've seen list Atlanta as an 8, and some list it as a 7b. I guess, like most places, it depends on the microclimate. I haven't lived in Atlanta so I'm not as familiar with its data. My mother did live in Athens, GA for years and I believe it is a zone 7b. Skytrekker, I hope you will share your zone 6 & 7 tips with me. I'm looking forward to working with new varieties that don't work well in zone 8.

[skytrekker]

MM

Atlanta was a zone 7b with the USDA zones released in 1990.
The Arbor foundation released a new zone map in 2003, which allows for the warming of the USA - it does show a great deal of 'zone creep'...
see; http://www.arborday.org/treeinfo/zonelookup.cfm

If you see the map the 'A' and 'B' sub sections haven been eliminated.
Atlanta is now a zone 8- and Savannah a zone 9.
You can also buy trees and shrubs at this non profit foundation.

My two Asiatic fan palms are growing robustly in this weather- if you PM me I can send send you photos. My whole garden in fact is just gone bonkers with growth in the heat.

By the way I am not the only palm grower in Connecticut- which by the way is mostly a zone 6 now, except for the shoreline- with a bulge to near Middletown being a zone 7. Buy perennials, shrubs,and trees rated for a zone 6-7. Here in Vernon, the zone 7 lines is about 25-30 miles to the south.

Good luck in your gardening pursuits here- there are many clubs specializing in everything from hosta to palms, Magnolia to even camellia.