SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) –Southeast KELOLAND had a taste of spring weather Thursday evening and night as thunderstorms moved across the area, dropping hail and periods of heavy rain. During the afternoon on Friday, a blizzard was occurring in central and eastern KELOLAND. While we’ll go through this again next week, but things are starting to change.

The big change is what’s expected in the southwest United States. Instead of a persistent trough, a ridge will start to build during the second week of the month. These are notorious for dry and warm air. This will slowly move northeast into the central and northern plains by the middle of the month.

So, I think the month will be split in half. The first half will bring colder than average temperatures and above average precipitation. The second half is looking warmer. With the warmer air, we’ll have to pay attention to severe weather chances.

Getting dry and warmer weather during April is ideal to get in the fields and start planting. Hopefully that happens during the second half of the month.