Iris,

I understand how averages work. My point was that I think the
reclassification of the zones based on the warmer recorded temperatures over
the last few years may not be wise. We don't really know if this is a long
term trend, never to be reversed, or if it is merely a short term
fluctuation in the climate. (Short term could be 20 or 30 years or more in
the geological sense.)

My other point was that the new zone map seems to be pretty loosely drawn,
lumping areas to the north of us into the same zone. Some of these areas to
the north are known to get substantially colder than it does here. I don't
know that the new map will really be doing many people any favors by making
them think that they are in a higher zone than they may actually be in.
Just because the new map tells you that you are now in a warmer zone than
you were in according to the last map doesn't mean you should rush out and
get those more tender trees you have always wanted to grow, you should be
aware of the actual temperatures that you can expect in your area.

Regards,
Roger Snipes Spokane, WA Zone 5, or maybe Zone 6.
Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it, misdiagnosing it,
and then misapplying the wrong remedies. Groucho Marx (1895-1977)

----- Original Message -----
From: "Iris Cohen"

I'm afraid you have misunderstood the USDA standards for the climate
zones. The
climate zone records the AVERAGE winter low temperature. If the lowest
temperature one year is -20 and the lowest temperature the next year is
zero,
you have an average minimum temperature of -10.

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