Overall the weekend looks quite nice with a lot of sunshine 2 out of the three days.  A weak cold front passing through the area overnight will bring a gentle wind off the water and allow some clouds to hold tough.

When you get up Saturday the best weather will be inland and up north.  Computer models continue to get better and we now have a product that simulates  the cloud cover for various regions and times.  The image below shows what the satellite will look like during the afternoon tomorrow.  The exact extent of the clouds won’t be 100% correct, however, the idea of a blob of clouds over southern Maine should come to fruition. 

The reason for the cloud cover is a weak flow of moist air off the ocean.  Unlike Friday when temperatures got well into the 60s, highs on Saturday will remain in the upper 50 and lower 60s. Even if we break out and enjoy more sunshine, temperatures will still be on the cool side.

If you are looking for rain you are going to have to wait a bit longer.  The jet stream continues to be in a blocking pattern preventing any significant moisture from reaching New England.  This block has lasted much of the fall and will continue into next week.

There are signs of a chance of rain sometime late next week or next weekend, but that’s still so far away a lot can change.

After a day with some clouds, Sunday and Monday look fantastic with an abundance of sunshine and pleasant temperatures.  Highs will reach the 60s and these levels are slightly above what you might expect closing out the first half of October.

Thus far, this has been a mild month averaging several degrees above the long term averages.  Additionally, we haven’t had much rain.  Portland and surrounding areas have gotten about 1/2 and inch of rain this month and very little if any additional rain is on the horizon.

Another interesting statistic is coastal areas have still not seen a frost.  Depending on what source you use, the average first frost of fall along the coast will occur the first or second week of October.  Remember averages are made of extremes and this means some years a frost will occur as early as late September while in other years the first frost may occur close to Halloween.

 This year, it appears we are going to make it into at least the third week of October without a frost along the coastal plain.

Gardening This Week This is a great time of year to remove some of the invasive plants in your garden. In this week’s video, I head to the New England Wild Flower Society to learn about some of the worst plant offenders in the garden.

If you want to discuss weather, climate or gardening or even education please find me on Twitter at @growingwisdom Please follow me there. Feel free to comment or ask questions too.

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