Buresh Blog: "Bowling ball" disturbances... Irrigation: Skip a Week!... Dec. skies

Dec. 12, 2018 — Our active subtropical jet stream - typically at a low latitude - shows few signs of slowing down.  If the anticipated El Nino continues to develop, the pattern is something we should get used to through the winter (as posted in "BB" Dec. 6th).  The result: fairly frequent storm systems producing heavy rain & occasional severe storms.  Upper level map below is for Dec. 14th & gives you an idea of the kind of pattern we'll likely see:

So with all this wet weather recently,

try turning * OFF * your irrigation system! Grass, plants & landscaping do not need a lot of water this time of year due to less evaporation, shorter days, cooler temps. & - this season so far - abundant moisture.  From the

:

The St. Johns River Water Management District is asking homeowners across its 18-county region to join the statewide “Skip a Week” campaign to save water during the cooler months of December, January and February when weekly irrigation isn’t always needed.

“If homeowners who irrigate skipped every other week of watering this winter, north and east-central Florida could save more than a billion gallons of water,” said St. Johns River Water Management District Executive Director Dr. Ann Shortelle. “Skipping a week of irrigation when your yard doesn’t need it helps to conserve water.”

During the cooler months, weekly irrigation isn’t always needed. In fact, research shows ½ to ¾ inches of water per irrigation zone every 10–14 days is sufficient.

Overwatering makes lawns less able to survive Florida’s inevitable droughts and encourages pests, disease and root rot. Using less water encourages deeper grass and plant roots, which makes them more drought-tolerant and less susceptible to pests and disease.

Skipping every other week is as simple as manually turning off your irrigation system.

To make sure your yard stays healthy, turn on your irrigation system if you see signs your grass needs water. Signs include:

Grass blades are folded in half;
Grass blades are blue-gray; or
Grass blades do not spring back; footprints remain visible on your lawn for several minutes after walking on it.
If you see signs your lawn is wilting and decide to irrigate, the University of Florida recommends an average of ½ to ¾ inches of water per application. Saturating the root zone and then letting the soil dry encourages healthy, deep root growth.

December skies courtesy "Sky&Telescope":

Dec. 13–14 (all night): The prolific Geminid meteor shower peaks early in the morning of the 14th. Watch late on the nights of the 13th and 14th. Those with dark skies might see one “shooting star” every few minutes.
 
Dec. 14 (evening): Moon and Mars are less than 4° apart as they emerge from evening twilight
 
Dec. 15 (dawn): Mercury rises 1¾ hours before the Sun in the southeast before dawn.
 
Dec. 20–21 (night): The almost-full Moon is in the Hyades.
 
Dec. 21 (dawn): Jupiter and Mercury are less than 1° apart. Look low in the southeast before the Sun rises.
 
Dec. 21: Northern winter begins at the solstice, at 5:23 p.m. EST (2:23 p.m. PST).
 
Dec. 24–25 (evening): The waning gibbous Moon is about ½° from the broad Beehive star cluster (M44) in Cancer.

Jan. 1 (dawn): Brilliant Venus and striking crescent Moon pair dramatically before dawn.
 
Jan. 3 (dawn): The crescent Moon, now thinner and lower, sits near Jupiter in the southeast before dawn.
 
Jan. 3: Earth is at perihelion, closest to the Sun in its orbit (91, 403,554 miles) at 12:20 a.m. (9:20 p.m. PST on Jan. 2)

Moon Phases
New Moon Dec. 7, 2:20 a.m. EST
First Quarter Dec. 15, 6:49 a.m. EST
Full Moon Dec. 22, 12:49 p.m. EST (Cold Moon)
Last Quarter Dec. 29, 4:34 a.m. EST

National Geographic has announced their 2018 photo winners - always impressive! - * here *.

Cox Media Group