tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post1967554447692194857..comments2024-03-18T22:50:29.792-07:00Comments on Cliff Mass Weather Blog: Soil Temperatures and GardeningCliff Mass Weather Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13948649423540350788noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-10446568710752611932012-09-30T21:49:17.423-07:002012-09-30T21:49:17.423-07:00Selecting a high soil is definitely likely to help...Selecting a high soil is definitely likely to help the cultivation in long term so various factors such as productivity,cost as well as quality matters probably the most.Dark top soil may be the needed component from the any farm but help the maqui berry farmers in most aspects.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02309266172010160630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-37836983605412041762012-05-11T07:08:12.233-07:002012-05-11T07:08:12.233-07:00Thanks for the soil temperature chart. We try to ...Thanks for the soil temperature chart. We try to get a jump on the season by starting seeds indoors and planting out plants. Unfortunately is is still freezing overnight in Sammamish, just east of Seattle. The National Weather forecast showed overnight temperatures were going to be above 42°, not the 32° we had on May 11th. Is there a source for a more accurate local weather forecast? We don't want to put our tender veggies out and have them freeze.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04852240083576350402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-12055982697874303082012-05-09T12:09:29.656-07:002012-05-09T12:09:29.656-07:00Cliff, when is the probcast coming back?Cliff, when is the probcast coming back?Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04682453612201774748noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-84509280271965698412012-05-08T13:40:57.628-07:002012-05-08T13:40:57.628-07:00Thank you! I was wondering why my beans were not ...Thank you! I was wondering why my beans were not emerging, while the peas were coming up.<br /><br />I need to get my tomatoes and peppers out soon since I'll be out of town the last week of May. I don't think I can rely on anyone else in the family to actually water them when they are frying in the window.Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14428361191787397415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-9219328165436354492012-05-08T13:12:53.858-07:002012-05-08T13:12:53.858-07:00Just of more incidental note really - Albeit. .. O...Just of more incidental note really - Albeit. .. Of course, actually digging, and loosening up whatever ground / soil, would work to add a degree or two. — Tilthing in whatever amendment, most likely a few more, as has been suggested more initially above.richard583https://www.blogger.com/profile/00415086002282750839noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-88182806894800156442012-05-07T14:43:36.853-07:002012-05-07T14:43:36.853-07:00Great post on soil temps and how they affect germi...Great post on soil temps and how they affect germination and plant growth!<br />Soil scientists and agronomists, however, usually measure soil temps at 5cm deep (about 2 inches), not 8 inches. <br />Good news for Seattle gardeners is that the top 5cm warm up much faster than deep down at 8 inches/20 cm. <br />You're right that it's still too cold for those tomatoes and squash though!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00680688284434397750noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-109445805142272682012-05-07T12:08:54.237-07:002012-05-07T12:08:54.237-07:00The second graph scaling seems wrong - >35C is ...The second graph scaling seems wrong - >35C is definitely too warm at 30cm down; <40F year 'round probably too cold.fpmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12368712993734292970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-11653739763807538782012-05-07T11:00:52.563-07:002012-05-07T11:00:52.563-07:00Here's a silly thought I've wondered about...Here's a silly thought I've wondered about on and off...<br /><br />The earth is, <i>very</i> roughly speaking, a ball of molten fire surrounded by the thin, temperate crust which we inhabit. This inner core is constantly radiating heat away, spending some time in our atmosphere before heading off into space.<br /><br />What effect, if any, does this heat have on our climate? Conversely, if we fast forward a few billion years to the point where the core has cooled down, what will the earth's climate look like (assuming all else stays equal)?David Cuthberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09877408767778945901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-21313754893687504272012-05-07T10:34:45.421-07:002012-05-07T10:34:45.421-07:00Thanks, Cliff, for addressing one of the ways the ...Thanks, Cliff, for addressing one of the ways the weather affects our gardens. As a full-time gardener, I am always watching the forecasts--not just for the day, but several days out--so I can plan my activities.<br /><br />You wrote: "Mulching my soil might have helped keep in the daytime heating." Having mulch on the ground during the winter and spring affects how the soil heats up. If you want your soil to warm up ASAP so you can seed, at a certain point in late winter you need to pull back the mulch so the sun directly contacts where you're going to sow. <br /><br />And it's not just the thickness of the mulch; it's also the reflectivity of the surface. For example, take a look at your photo of the thermometer in the ground. Note how much reflection there is from the dead leaves, especially the leaf in the upper right corner. If the photons that hit that leaf were instead allowed to hit dark moist soil, the latter would warm up much sooner.Garyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11548693323486769251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-2985393180649478552012-05-07T09:36:47.891-07:002012-05-07T09:36:47.891-07:00If you average soil temperatures all year, you wil...If you average soil temperatures all year, you will get a number close to the mean temperature for the location. <br /><br />For most soils, at a depth of 20-25 feet, the delay for the summer "heat wave" to arrive is about 6 months. Where the mean temperature is comfortable (say, 60 degrees), some folks bury air ducts at the proper depth and get free heating and air conditioning! In the middle of winter, last summer's heat wave is going by. In the middle of summer, last winter's cold wave is going by. The 60 degree mean annual line runs across the deep south, then turns north along the west coast due to ocean warming. The most common use of this "free" heat/AC is tempering large commercial chicken coops.Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09726805396038087981noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-25808071816773486722012-05-07T07:15:15.870-07:002012-05-07T07:15:15.870-07:00If you know your weeds and/or volunteer veggies an...If you know your weeds and/or volunteer veggies and have a soil thermometer you can keep track one year at which temperature they germinate. Next year no need for thermometer - just use weed germination to determine soil temps.Ehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12452842332549541201noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-88289977985695915772012-05-07T04:23:09.191-07:002012-05-07T04:23:09.191-07:00Wonderful article, Cliff. I always look at the ten...Wonderful article, Cliff. I always look at the ten day forecast to determine when to plant corn and beans. As long as the days are relatively sunny with highs in the 60s, or above, I feel I am good to go. The soil warms quickly with the sun high in the Seattle sky. I planted my corn on Sunday, the fifth. I will keep my fingers crossed that the ten day forecast remains accurate!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-66965271279698314772012-05-07T01:19:53.223-07:002012-05-07T01:19:53.223-07:00If you make a pile of kitchen and leaf and grass c...If you make a pile of kitchen and leaf and grass compost, it can automatically raise the soil temperature to start your seeds growing when the rest of the soil is too cold! Sometimes in the Northwest, you find yourself waiting a long time for those soil temperatures to rise!!! Thanks for those soil links, love the agri-graphs!KChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07252935014307272447noreply@blogger.com