Boston has been experiencing unseasonable warm weather this week. GBH's Morning Edition asked our audience to send their weather and gardening questions, and meteorologist Dave Epstein answered them on the air. This transcript has been edited for clarity.
Have a gardening or weather question for meteorologist Dave Epstein? Tweet him @GrowingWisdom, email us at thewakeup@wgbh.org, or text 617-300-2008.
What can New England except from Tropical Depression Nicole?
Hurricane Nicole, now a tropical depression, made landfall in Florida Thursday, causing at least three deaths, according to the Associated Press.
Much of the system has since dissipated, but New England will feel its remnants this weekend, Epstein said.
Expect rain and heavy humidity, he said.
“Nicole is bringing us a southerly flow of air, and that's going to pull up humidity into the region here later on this afternoon and overnight tonight,” Epstein said Friday. “It's going to be about as humid as you can get in New England in November tonight and tomorrow morning.”
Though hurricane season continues until the end of November, these storms tend to be less common this late in the fall, Epstein said.
“Nicole, which reached Florida as a hurricane, was the latest that we've seen something go into that part of the Atlantic basin,” he said. “We don't generally see big blockbuster storms. And indeed, Nicole was briefly a hurricane and then quickly downgraded."
Temperatures in Boston are expected to hit 70 again Friday and Saturday. When will winter come?
If forecasts bear out, Boston will see six 70-degree days in November this year, tying with the all-time high in 2020. It’s a concerning trend, and well above the average of one 70-degree day in November, Epstein said. As the climate changes, Boston will likely see more and more warm November days in the future.
Colder temperatures are coming as early as next week, he said.
But first, it will be a warm, humid and rainy weekend. Friday is cloudy, with highs in the low 70s and rain moving in this afternoon and evening, Epstein said.
“After dark, we see these showers coming in, in waves from that southerly flow,” Epstein said. “I do think that there may be the rumble of thunder. We're going to have strong, gusty winds — there's actually a wind advisory posted for southeastern Massachusetts, the Cape and the islands.”
People in those areas should prepare for some scattered power outages as winds gusting at 25 to 40 mph sweep through, he said.
On Saturday, the remnants of Tropical Depression Nicole will combine with a cold front, he said.
“As the front comes through tomorrow morning, that's going to produce another round of heavy showers between about 7 a.m. and 9 a.m., with some gusty winds and perhaps thunder,” Epstein said. “That's when it's also the most humid.”
The afternoon will be clear and breezy, with highs in the 70s.
The Boston area may see a few more showers on Sunday around noon, he said, but an otherwise sunny day with highs in the 50s.
“Then the cold moves in Monday and Tuesday,” he said. “We stay in the 40s for highs all day. Then another weather system comes through here Wednesday and that's probably going to add snow to the forecast for some parts.”
Yes, snow — but it will likely be confined to the higher elevations of the Berkshires and northern New England.
I have green tomatoes still on the vine in my garden bed. Should I pick them and hope they ripen on my counter top? —Unnamed listener
Whether they will ripen on the counter depends on how close they are to ripening on the vine. With cold weather coming next week, it’s best to pick them — and enjoy them in their green state, Epstein said.
“Sometimes you just pick them and then they shrivel up and they're not really useful,” he said.
He recommended lacto-fermenting them to create a green tomato pickle.
“They're amazing,” Epstein said. “It's really easy. You just need some spices and some salt and some water. You can also do fried green tomatoes — you can slice them up, a little egg, a little breadcrumbs, and fry them up and they are delicious. I actually don't even use the breadcrumbs, I chop them in fine pieces and sauté them with some olive oil and then put eggs on them.”
I planted bulbs (specifically Iris, Tulip and Daffodil) last month and with all of this unseasonably warm weather, they are starting to come up! What should I do? I am afraid they are going to die once the weather gets really cold and stays that way. —Amy
Worry not, Epstein said. The bulbs should be fine.
“You could put a little bit of mulch on them, or some leaves or something like that, but they are built for the cold weather,” he said. “The cells inside the leaves of those bulbs can handle super cold weather. Even if the tips were to get a little damaged, the flowers will be fine.”
If these 70-degree days were coming after a period of frost — say, in January or February — they would cause more damage to plants who wake up only to freeze over again. But at this point in the season, that’s not a concern, he said.
“We really haven't shut down the plants yet and they're not really dormant, they'll be fine,” Epstein said. “I wouldn't worry about them.”
Is there any good foliage left for leaf peeping this year?
Sure, but only for those willing to travel, Epstein said. Check the Catskills, Pennsylvania and possibly the south coast of Connecticut.
“I would certainly give a local area a call down there and just say, ‘hey, what does it look like?’ before I took a drive for four hours to go see leaves,” Epstein said. “But around here, we are done.”
