Late winter storm more annoyance than problem

The weather needs to check its calendar.

A rare May winter storm pelted Lawrence with rain, sleet and then snow on Thursday, dropping .56 inches of precipitation on the city.

Roads remained clear Thursday evening and the weather wasn’t expected to cause any travel problems today. National Weather Service meteorologist Jarod Leighton said the roads and ground would likely remain clear of any accumulation because of warm ground temperatures.

Light snow is again expected to fall this morning but Leighton said he did not expect it to stick. The snowfall would tie the record for latest snow of the season in the area.

Such a late snow may seem dramatic, but the good news is that the weather’s bark will likely be worse than its bite. Jennifer Smith, horticulture agent for the Kansas State Research and Extension office in Douglas County, said as long as a hard freeze didn’t hit– the overnight low was expected to be around 32 degrees — the flowers and fruit trees would be OK.

“It seems crazy, it looks crazy, but it’s not too bad (for plants),” she said. “It’s probably worse for our morale.”

She did add that it’s always a good idea in near-freezing weather to cover or bring inside blooming plants, such as strawberries.

The weather’s not expected to get much warmer for the next few days.

Highs today and Saturday are expected to be in the upper 40s before warming up to 58 degrees on Sunday and 67 degrees on Monday.