Why You’ll Be Glad Later About Upcoming Single Digit Temps

According to the National Weather Service Pendleton, OR, we are in for some pretty cold temps this weekend and beyond. 

 Why will we be glad, sort of, next spring and summer?

The NWS is forecasting overnight lows of 15, 12, and 9 degrees beginning Friday night, and our daytime temps will not get much above 23-26 degrees. These are expected to linger into next Tuesday and Wednesday. Skies will be cloudy, with only a very slight chance of snow.

While this seems too cold, think of this. A prolonged stretch of sub-freezing temps, especially single-digits, can help reduce some of the insect pests next spring.

  Exterminators say it can help

This next cold stretch will help, although it does depend on certain factors.  If you have a relatively clean yard without piles of leaves or a lot of dense vegetation (untrimmed bushes etc) you stand a better chance of wintering insects dying due to cold.  Many varieties can burrow or 'hide' beneath vegetation which can protect them til next year.

Sometimes bitter cold will drive insects into your home, which can cause some issues during winter. But in general, these bitter cold snaps are better than a long, mild, and wet winter, which never seems to kill off pests

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We've seen over the years when the winter has been more like San Francisco, invasions of those army worms in the spring...and nobody wants that!  It is a known fact they will not thrive, or even survive when temps fall below even 40 degrees.

So, bear with the cold for a bit. It will help with bugs at least some next spring.