Climate and Vegetation
Wisconsin's climate varies. Because of the size of the state from the north to the south, and the influence of the lakes, the temperatures have a wide range. The average temperatures range from -40 farenheit to 100 farenheit. Of course the record lows are much lower and the record highs are much higher. The state lies in the temperate zone with prevailing westerly winds. The winters are very cold. We get a lot of snow. It's a good thing for my viking blood. But I do hate all the shoveling. The summers are nice although they can be very hot and humid. We went to Las Vegas in August, 1996 and the temperatures were 116 and even higher. But when we got home to 90 we could barely stand it*S*
The springs are usually mild with a lot of rain. The old saying "April showers bring May Flowers" could have originated here. The rain is much needed and helps to melt the snow, but I feel sorry for the states below who receive the runoff. The tornadoes are a drawback but the detection systems are so much better now that you can almost tell when and where they will strike the minute they form. My favorite time of the year is in the fall.
Here is a picture of my granddaughter, Chelsea, on the left, and my son, Caleb, on the right, playing in the fallen leaves in Chelsea's yard.
The leaves turn fabulous colors and the days are sunny and a bit cooler with a nice breeze. The kids are back in school and drives to the apple orchards on a weekend become family adventures. We come home with loads of apples and then the smell of apples pervade the house as we make applesauce and apple pies.
The vegetation in Wisconsin is abundant,probably because of the hot humid growing season and in the winter, the snow forms a protective blanket. The picture here is of a corn field. They are very common also. In fact I can look out my kitchen window and see a cornfield not far away. At times it seems you can almost watch it grow.
Before the white settlers arrived,30,000,000 acres of forest land covered the state. By the mid 20th century it had declined to 5/000,000 acres. The trees found commonly in the norther part of the state are, the Jack Pine,Norway Spruce,White Spruce,Tamarack, Balsam Fir, and the.White Cedar.
The trees found in the south, common in my area are, Black Walnut, Honey Locust, Black Maple, Black Oak, Shellbark Hickory, and Crabapple.
Paper Birch, Yellow Birch Wild Plum, Aspen, Black Willow, Cottonwood, Hornbeam, and Hickory are common throughout the state.