Despite the record snowfall we received during the January 2016 Blizzard this winter has been unseasonably mild thanks to one of the strongest El Niños on record. With warmer winter days drumming up thoughts of summertime at the Jersey Shore, it’s important to discuss the current El Nino and how it might impact our spring and summer growing seasons.

To keep our client’s properties fully functional during severe weather events and to gauge when we can best service clients LAN Exteriors utilizes forecasts from Hackettstown, NJ based WeatherWorks. In addition to continually monitoring the weather conditions in your neighborhood we also look at weather patterns and trends, such as El Niño and La Niña, to help us better plan for the upcoming season. El Niño and La Niña can lead to extreme weather events across the globe. These weather patterns typically occur every two to seven years and last nine to twelve months. El Niño usually means a milder winter in the Northeastern United States amongst other areas, and wetter than average winter across the Southern United States. La Niña is the opposite of El Niño.

Right now we are experiencing of one of the strongest El Niño’s on record. Some of the strongest El Niño events on record are 1972-1973, 1982-1983, and 1997-1998. Extreme weather can occur during or immediately following an El Niño event. For example, the summer of 1983 was one of the hottest on record for the Northeast. And although no two El Nino events are alike they do share similarities. Some El Niño events are followed by a La Niña, as is expected after this year’s event. However, La Niña is not guaranteed and if this El Niño ends rather abruptly this spring it could mean a hotter and drier growing season for the Northeast.

With the current El Niño weather pattern we can expect flowers to bloom, trees to bud, and crops to grow earlier than normal. If the El Niño event persists into late summer we can also plan for a longer than average growing season. This is important information to know when planning for landscape and grounds maintenance services. The extended season this year will allow a longer timeframe to start new landscape projects, catch up on construction and paving work that you’ve been meaning to get to, and to simply enjoy your beautiful outdoor spaces created and maintained by LAN Exteriors.