Mariton: White March

by Tim Burris, Preserve Manager

The precipitation totals are near average at the end of the first quarter.  In March, we received 4.83 inches of precipitation at Mariton, bringing the total for the year to 10.49 inches.  (10.66” is average.)  It is interesting that it snowed here on both the first and last day of the month.    The March 1^st snow came down quickly and really made roads slippery.  The March 31^st snow started as rain and never stuck to the pavement, but did coat the ground.  It was interesting to look out on April Fool’s Day to see white.  Of the two events, the end of the month was more lamb-like, but March never felt warm to me.  There was a bit of snow in March.  We didn’t get a single big event, but we had several snowfalls.  The ground temperature kept plowing to a minimum, but the snow pack on the trails delayed a lot of jobs I have planned.

It also rained a bit during March, including a thunderstorm on March 26^th.  I recorded 0.89 inches the next morning, but a lot of that came during a short period of time.  It came down so quickly that the next morning Sunnyside Road looked like a street sweeper had come through.  The road was completely clear of all the cinders and bits of debris that accumulated during the winter.  Fortunately, the gully washer didn’t scour the trails similarly.

I hope we get rain during April – at night.  All of the preserve managers have a lot of catch up to do this month, and wet days won’t help us.