The Press-Dispatch
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Spring weather outlook is good for the short term B-12 brought unseasonable warmth to Indiana and kept the state relative- ly dry since January is expected to stay for a while longer yet, the Indiana State Climate Office says. "What you see is what you get," The weather pattern that has fice's Spring 2012 Outlook. While above-normal tempera- said state climatologist Dev Ni- yogi, based at Purdue Universi- ty. "Our outlook is for more of the same. We've got a pattern going on here." Although flowers in home gar- dens are blooming, trees are show- ing signs of green and farmers are heading into their fields to pre- pare them for planting, that doesn't mean the outlook is all rosy. There could be frost at any time, and there is a higher-than-normal risk of severe weather, including torna- does and thunderstorms, Niyogi cautions in the State Climate Of- tures should continue through the next three months and the current drier trend should persist at least through early spring, precipita- tion is expected to return to nor- mal in May and June, according to the outlook. The summerlike weather is largely the result of a "positive Arctic Oscillation," a pattern that locked cold air in Canada rather than moving it to Indiana. In ad- dition, La Niña's typical pattern of sending Indiana wetter and cool- er weather well into the spring is ending. It went into June last year, delaying farmers from planting crops for many weeks. The Arctic Oscillation has been more of a major player throughout the winter, said associate climatol- ogist Ken Scheeringa. "AO domi- nated La Niña and gave us the op- posite effect of a year ago," he said. As of March 27, the state aver- age temperature for the month was 54.2 degrees Fahrenheit, nearly 15 degrees above normal and so far the warmest March on record in Indiana since 1895. The weather has been so good that some farmers hit the fields in early March to prepare them for planting. Some have even plant- ed their corn already, a risky ven- ture since it typically is not plant- ed until mid-April when there is less threat of a destructive freeze. Farmers with some types of crop insurance would lose the replant- ing portion of their coverage if they planted before April 6—if the crop were damaged and needed replanting. in effect, extending their growing season by a month, running the ad- ditional risk of having to contend with more weeds than normal lat- er in the season. But at least for now, a sight to Farmers planting now also are, twigs; likewise for herbaceous pe- rennials and hardy annuals," she said. "Except for conifers, plants that lose leaves or leaf buds will produce new ones." Fruit crops such as apples, behold has been garden plants in bloom so early. Spring blooming plants have "a tremendously early and spectacu- lar display this year," said Purdue Extension consumer horticulture specialist Rosie Lerner in West La- fayette. "It's as if the season is on fast-forward, bringing nearly ev- erything into bloom all together." Barring any unusual weather, Lerner said a frost or freeze will not kill plants whose primary or- namental feature is flowers. "However, there certainly could be injury to foliage and young peaches, grapes and strawber- ries have been developing rapid- ly because of temperatures in the 70s and 80s. But that has put crops in a sensitive stage, especially in the event of a cold snap with tem- peratures at 28 degrees or lower. Such sudden drops in tempera- ture are more related to weather conditions on a particular day even amid an overall trend of warmer weather, Scheeringa said. "A freeze event can be related as more of a snapshot of what's hap- pening on a specific day than to a longer trend," he said. "It is quite unpredictable." Workshop to start specialty food businesses is April 12 their own specialty food business can receive information and tips at an April 12 workshop. "An Introduction to Starting a People interested in starting neurship, marketing, and product and process development. "This is a great opportunity to Specialty Food Business in Indi- ana" will be conducted at the Indi- ana Farm Bureau office, 225 S. East St., Indianapolis, and will present a comprehensive overview of the startup process for food business- es in Indiana. Topics include food safety, business planning, entrepre- meet with professionals who will discuss everything from general concepts of starting a food business to specific regulations," said Maria Marshall, associate professor of agricultural economics at Purdue University. Marshall will speak on business planning and marketing. "It's rare to have all of those differ- ent topics presented in one day." es the term "specialty foods" be- cause many small-business own- ers want to focus on one or two spe- cialty items, such as organic foods or homemade pet treats, Marshall said. But the information presented in the sessions applies to any kind of food business. Two other workshop speakers The title of the workshop us- are from Purdue University: Katie Clayton, food science extension out- reach specialist, and Steve Smith, MORE get PLUS • Exclusive Video It's everything you love about The Press-Dispatch • All color photos, plus extra photos of events • Interactive Features • Search current and back issues SUBSCRIPTION PLANS Paper Subscribers The paper plus online edition Add $4/year* NETedition only Best value for out-of-state netedition $34/year* pressdispatch.net/edition Web, Smartphone, Tablet pressdispatch.net/edition *Introductory Rate through May 4, 2012. Regular price $5 per year for add-on, $35 per year for NETedition only. UNTIL MAY 4! FREE TRY IT food science pilot plant manager. The workshop's keynote speaker is Jenny Cleave, founder and own- er of Simple Taste Inc., which spe- cializes in gluten-free baked goods. Other speakers are Sharon Far- rell of the Indiana State Department of Health and Cissy Bowman of In- diana Certified Organic. Registration costs $100 per reg- istrant and includes lunch, refresh- ments and a three-ring binder of information. Application and pay- ment must be mailed by April 5 to Marsha Pritchard, Department of Agricultural Economics, Pur- due University, 403 W. State St., West Lafayette, IN 47907. For more information, contact Pritchard at 765-494-0889 or mpritcha@pur- due.edu. The workshop is sponsored by Purdue's departments of agricul- tural economics and food science and the Indiana State Department of Health. Wednesday, April 4, 2012 The Press-Dispatch netedition