As an avid NCCA basketball fan who lives for March each year, the Madness is not only about my team.This year, it is about the WEATHER!

Never before can anyone remember a March in New York State as warm as this one. Actually, the same can be said for February, January, December, and back to late fall.  I may be off slightly on my facts, but I think that one of the largest snowfalls in eastern New York, this season, was in October, last year. Yes, October, and we still had apples on the trees. The 2011-2012 New York winters have been record setting for no snowfall, no ice on the lakes, and no frost in the ground.  Last year, Syracuse had 179 inches of snow; this season, only 50.6 inches have fallen. The same pattern was prevalent across the state.

Over the last two weeks, we have exploded into green growth caused by high temperatures that have been in the high 70s and even 80s, and nights only dropping to the 40s and 50s.  This is truly March Madness.  Latest reports are that we are tracking 18 to 25 days early, and the next seven days are forecasted to be as warm. Along the lake in western New York, bloom dates can vary a few days in mid-May, while eastern New York regions are the first of May. Presently, folks are talking about April. The May full moon comes on May 6 this year, and we know that with the full moon can come cold temperatures.  There is an old Yiddish saying, G.W.W.P., which means God Willing and Weather Permitting, we will have a crop. For now, all we can do is wait and watch the real March Madness and cheer for the Orange (that would be Syracuse, not navels!)