Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: How does snowfall affect drought conditions?
I have been repeatedly asked the question, with record snowfall in many areas, does it mean our drought is over.
Oh how I would love to say absolutely! But I can’t. Not yet. Check out this Drought monitor map.
While snowfall is a great insulator from our sub zero temperatures, the ground IS frozen. That means that, should there be melting of the snowfall it will run off and NOT soak into the soil.
But isn’t it good that there IS that moisture to run off into our lakes and other waterways?
I had to do some research to find at least some sort of answer on that and even then I found a lot of varied opinions. Some were not optimistic. I’ll share this from Jeff Strock of the University of Minnesota:
“While above average snowfall may be perceived as a positive for addressing drought, the reality is that it depends. It’s important to remember that snow is not as effective as rain for addressing drought conditions. As a rule of thumb, only about 25% of the water from melting snow will infiltrate the soil.
In most areas of Minnesota, the ground is frozen. The official frost depth as of Tuesday, January 3 at the Southwest Research & Outreach Center in Lamberton was 22 inches, which is similar to the same time last year. (You can read more by clicking on the link above)
Others held more optimism. As someone that prefers to be optimistic I chose to select THAT information.
I went to the National Weather Service to see what they had to say. As of Dec. 29th, 2022, they say, quote, “Some Small Improvements in the Drought Situation”. This covers the entire U.S. There is another update coming up this Thursday, Jan. 19th.
From South Dakota I found this quote, “The scale of the benefits depends on location. The snow melt could either run off into creeks and rivers or soak into the ground. Both outcomes are positive, but areas in steep terrain that have more severe drought, may have to wait until the ground thaws in the spring to see any improvements”.
Snowpack may keep our soil from freezing as far down as it has in recent years when we’ve experienced extreme cold with little snow cover. That sends the frost depth deeper.
That means the frost could come out of the soil faster and allow the moisture to drop down. Ideally our frozen soil will lift as the snow melts and the soil can retain that moisture!
