Mother Nature gives the Cape Fear region an early taste of spring before winter returns this weekend

WILMINGTON -- Blue skies and sunshine will hang over the rest of the week as the region gets a dose of early spring weather.

Through Friday, daytime temperatures are forecast to reach or surpass 70 degrees -- a stark contrast from last week’s Polar Vortex that brought frigid temperatures here and blizzards in some parts of the country.

Last Thursday’s high temperature was 42 degrees, with a nighttime low of 27, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Jordan Baker.

This week will be quite the reprieve.

“These warm temperatures will hang over through Friday, but then a cold front comes in Friday night,” Baker said.

That front will bring highs in the low 50s and a chance for rain through Sunday.

The warm spell could be a mixed blessing for farmers and gardeners, said Sam Marshall, a horticulture agent with N.C. Cooperative Extension's Brunswick County office in Bolivia.

The warmth might be enough to trick early-season blueberries and strawberries into budding early, Marshall said. Those buds could freeze if temperatures dip to freezing again. Some growers will irrigate their fields before a freeze, he added; ironically, the resulting ice layer can protect tender plants from chill climate.

It's hard to tell, but the warm spell might trick some camellias and bulb plants into blooming early -- only to lose their flowers in a later freeze.

"It won't kill them, but it will make them a little uglier," said Susan Brown, extension horticulture agent at the New Hanover County Arboretum.

"It's the trade-off for living in a coastal environment," Marshall said. "We get some great growing days, but some of our best days are in the middle of winter."

On the other hand, a short warm spell followed by a freeze might not have much of an effect.

"A lot of trees and shrubs that were flowering right after Hurricane Florence probably won't be flowering anyway," Marshall said. Those plants, stressed into blooming by the storm, he said, aren't likely to produce this spring.

Another point to remember is that the soil temperature is different from the air temperature.

"Ambient temperatures are one thing, but soil temperatures are another," Marshall said.

It might be in the 70s right now, but soil temperatures around here are still cool. It takes two consistent weeks of temperatures at between 55 and 60 degrees to warm up the soil, Marshall added, and it's not certain if the warmup this week will be enough.

Reporter Hunter Ingram can be reached at 910-343-2327 or Hunter.Ingram@StarNewsOnline.com.