Winter coat instead of between-seasons jackets, scraping ice instead of licking ice, and the heating has to be turned up again. Spring feelings are put in their place during Holy Week. The Easter holidays are even colder than the last Christmas holidays.
The Christmas holidays were exceptionally mild and, according to GeoSphere Austria, there was less snow than ever since records have been kept. 16 degrees were measured on Christmas Eve, and almost 20 degrees on New Year’s Day. Temperatures that high are not reached during the Easter holidays. On the contrary, it cools down significantly.
Ten degrees colder than normal
The weather change began on Palm Sunday with the passage of a rain front. Behind it, unusually cold air will flood Austria on Monday, coming directly from Scandinavia. The temperatures on Monday usually remain well below the ten degree mark, around 15 degrees would actually be normal in the state capitals at the beginning of April. With brisk to strong north winds, the air feels even fresher due to the wind chill effect.
It’s particularly cold on Monday in the mountains. At an altitude of 2,000 meters it is only minus ten degrees in some places, such as on the Dachstein and on the Schneeberg. There is also some fresh snow in the ski areas. For ski holidaymakers, the snow conditions on the mountains are currently better than at Christmas. There is almost two meters of snow on the Galzig in the Arlberg region, at Christmas it was not even one meter. On Tuesday morning at an altitude of 2,000 meters it was only minus 15 degrees.
Three frosty nights all over Austria
The cold becomes problematic for many plants, especially fruit trees. The nights on Tuesday, Wednesday and Maundy Thursday will be frosty everywhere in Austria, even at low altitudes. Locally below minus five degrees can be expected when the sky clears and the wind temporarily decreases. Even during the day it will remain cold up to and including Thursday with temperatures only in the single-digit plus range.
The development of the plants is well advanced due to the warm March, the apricots have now largely faded and other types of fruit have already begun to sprout. “The fruit heads of the apricot are particularly sensitive after flowering, so even slightly below zero can be problematic,” said Rosemarie Wilhelm from the Styrian Chamber of Agriculture.
Damage to fruit feared
According to the Chamber of Agriculture there, the announced frost is also causing great concern for the fruit farmers in Burgenland, especially because there will be several frosty nights. In addition to apricots, sub-zero temperatures are not an advantage for cherries, strawberries, apples, pears and plums in the current development.
In some regions, apples and pears are already beginning to blossom or are in the ballooning stage. These crops can be frost-irrigated provided irrigation is installed and there is sufficient water. According to the Chamber of Agriculture, this is the case for around 80 percent of the pome fruit orchards in Lower Austria.
Last week’s frost caused damage to the apricots in Lower Austria, especially in the Weinviertel, but also in places in the Wachau, according to Manfred Weinhappel from the Lower Austrian Chamber of Agriculture. Minus seven degrees were measured in Mistelbach, for example. According to the expert, there will probably no longer be an average harvest in the Weinviertel.
Slight reduction from Good Friday
Apart from the low temperatures and the unpleasant wind, the next few days will bring a mixture of clouds and sun, with the south being sunny the longest. A few snow and rain showers can get involved, but there won’t be many until Maundy Thursday. It’s dry most of the time.
In general, the clouds become more towards Good Friday, then precipitation is announced. Temporarily it can snow all the way down to the lowlands, then the snow line rises and it rains. Because the temperatures are slowly rising and the risk of frost at night is decreasing again.
For Easter, maximum values of around or slightly above ten degrees are announced, but this is still below average for the time of year. Whether the Easter bunny will be able to hide its nest outdoors or whether it will be raining cannot yet be judged. In any case, the current weather models anticipate the possibility of rain.
Cool in many neighboring countries too
In large parts of Europe, Holy Week brings cool weather for the season, because the cold air from Scandinavia also flows into Italy and up to the Balkan Peninsula, for example. In Rome, for example, it will only have a maximum of 15 degrees in the next few days, in Venice and Split only around ten degrees in the afternoons. In Berlin, the temperatures in the first half of the week hardly exceed five degrees, from Maundy Thursday it will be milder.
If you are looking for summer during Holy Week, you will find it on the Iberian Peninsula. In Portugal and Spain, for example, it gets over 25 degrees every day, and on some days between Lisbon and Seville it is even close to 30 degrees. But also in the eastern Mediterranean region, summer will make a temporary appearance over the course of the week. On Holy Saturday in Crete with Scirocco, the wind from the Sahara, well over 25 degrees are possible, on Easter Sunday also in Cyprus.
