British Columbia: Heatwave

Discussion in 'Outdoor Gardening in the Pacific Northwest' started by Michael F, Jun 28, 2021.

  1. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

    Messages:
    11,417
    Likes Received:
    501
    Location:
    Britain zone 8/9
    Surprised there isn't a thread on this yet! With Lytton shattering the Canada all-time heat record (set 84 years ago) not just by the usual tenth of a degree or so, but twice in two days and by an extraordinary two whole degrees to 47° . . . and expected to break it yet again tomorrow . . . . what new hell are we entering??

    Hope you're all surviving OK!

    PS last Saturday, the max temperature here in NE England was 10.4° :-))
     
    Margot likes this.
  2. wcutler

    wcutler Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout 10 Years

    Messages:
    10,789
    Likes Received:
    2,225
    Location:
    Vancouver, BC Canada
    I would be complaining more about that, being more of a hothouse flower myself. I'm not sure the plants would agree, though.
     
  3. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
    Not knowing is pretty darn scary - not just for us, here and now, but for the whole world as these aberrant weather events occur at an ever-increasing pace.
     
  4. vitog

    vitog Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    1,779
    Likes Received:
    269
    Location:
    Burnaby, Canada
    What's interesting to me is that we are breaking these records during a "La Nina" phase of our weather, when temperatures are supposed to be, on average, cooler than normal. I can't wait until we get into the next "El Nino", when it should be warmer.
     
  5. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
    You're saying this rhetorically I hope - not seriously looking forward to even higher temperatures.
     
  6. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

    Messages:
    11,417
    Likes Received:
    501
    Location:
    Britain zone 8/9
    It was rather miserable! A dreich, drizzly day with an NE wind off the chilly North Sea. Back up to a nice pleasant 19° the last couple of days.
     
  7. Michael F

    Michael F Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator 10 Years

    Messages:
    11,417
    Likes Received:
    501
    Location:
    Britain zone 8/9
    Welcome to the coolest year of the rest of your life . . . :-(

    Particularly alarming to see that some places (including Abbotsford) shattered their old temperature highs by more than ten degrees
    From Weather Summaries - Environment Canada
     
    Margot likes this.
  8. vitog

    vitog Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    1,779
    Likes Received:
    269
    Location:
    Burnaby, Canada
    Not rhetorically, I'm just scientifically interested. I've been waiting several years to see what weather the next El Nino brings.
     
  9. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
    Not to quibble but to me there's a big difference between anticipating warmer temperatures and actually looking forward until we get into the next "El Nino", when it should be warmer.

    I don't understand why you 'cannot wait' for temperatures even higher than those we are experiencing now.

    Perhaps I misunderstand your words.
     
  10. Acerholic

    Acerholic Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout Maple Society

    Messages:
    15,597
    Likes Received:
    13,023
    Location:
    Hampshire England Zone 8b UK
    Just heard the BBC news saying BC hit 49.5 °C yesterday. Almost unbelievable, but I know it isn't from evidence of forum members. That should be the peak hopefully.
     
  11. wcutler

    wcutler Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout 10 Years

    Messages:
    10,789
    Likes Received:
    2,225
    Location:
    Vancouver, BC Canada
    It's blowing up a storm right now, cool wind from the east for some reason. I would keep my windows open, but it's too noisy and blows my blinds around.
    One report says 29 on Wednesday; another says 26. That's a big difference - hot vs. pleasantly warm. Whichever it is, I'll be able to leave home without my down vest.
    50% chance of light rain a week from now.
     
    Margot likes this.
  12. togata57

    togata57 Generous Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    3,417
    Likes Received:
    364
    Location:
    Columbus, Ohio
    On Sunday, the small mountain town of Lytton, British Columbia, became one of the hottest places in the world. Then, on Monday, Lytton got even hotter – 47.9C (118F) – hotter than it’s ever been in Las Vegas, 1,300 miles to the south. And by Tuesday, 49.6C (121F).

    “It’s warmer in parts of western Canada than in Dubai,” said David Phillips, senior climatologist for Environment Canada in an interview with CTV. “I mean, it’s just not something that seems Canadian.”

    How did a small town in Canada become one of the hottest places on Earth? | Eric Holthaus
     
  13. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
    I saw that in our forecast too - yesterday - it has since evaporated. :-(
     
  14. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
  15. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
  16. wcutler

    wcutler Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout 10 Years

    Messages:
    10,789
    Likes Received:
    2,225
    Location:
    Vancouver, BC Canada
    That's grim, and so are the suggested related articles. We don't have a "don't like" button.
     
  17. vitog

    vitog Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    1,779
    Likes Received:
    269
    Location:
    Burnaby, Canada
    Sorry, Margot, I should have been clearer. The El Nino temperature average should be warmer than the La Nina average, but that doesn't always hold true. I just want to see the overall effect of the next El Nino; I didn't enjoy the heatwave anymore than anyone else. What I look forward to is higher average temperatures, which would benefit my garden crops. What would be really interesting is to break the record for the highest yearly average temperature at YVR that was set way back in 1958.
     
  18. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
    Love it! Never heard that word before (and I'm at least half Scottish)!

    "A word that is commonly used to describe the Scottish weather has been named the "most iconic" Scots word. "Dreich" - meaning dull or gloomy - topped a poll to mark Book Week Scotland, led by the Scottish Book Trust. It beat off contenders including "glaikit", "scunnered" and "shoogle"." (2019)

    'Dreich' is named most popular Scots word by Scottish Book Trust.
     
    Michael F likes this.
  19. Margot

    Margot Renowned Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    2,531
    Likes Received:
    1,335
    Location:
    Nanoose Bay, BC Canada
    Thank you @vitog; I think you realize I wasn't criticizing so much as trying to understand what you meant. And now I do.
    I suspect you will not have to wait long. I must say though that I am not looking forward to higher average temperatures . . . even back in the 1950s, my family was growing a huge, beautiful, productive, vegetable garden in South Burnaby with the prevailing temperatures at that time. Higher temperatures can bring problems as well as benefits. Be careful what you wish for.
     

Share This Page