Climate

The ranch climate is great for humans.  Summer brings many clear days with low humidity and daytime high temperatures in the 70’s.  Of the annual 22 inches of precipitation, 46% falls in November through January – which is great for cross-country skiing on the ranch and downhill skiing at Mt. Bachelor. 

Plants, however, have to be tough to live on the ranch.  Vandevert is on the cusp of USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 3 (like much of northern Montana) and Zone 4 (like much of southern Montana).  Vandevert is in a relatively harsh hardiness zone because frost can occur at any time of year.  In the summer the ground heats up rapidly in the sunny days and gives off heat rapidly when the sun is gone.  Many established plants will suffer frost damage at 24 degrees or less.  Some will freeze between 24 and 32.  The growing season averages only 70 to 80 days.  Some "frost pockets" in the lower riparian areas experience frost when the land around does not.  The good news is the climate also limits the variety of weeds that grow on the ranch.

On the map of Oregon climates on the Oregon Climate Service web site at http://www.ocs.orst.edu/index.html, the ranch, Sunriver, and La Pine are in Climatic Division 7 (South Central), along with Bend, Madras, and Klamath Falls.  But the ranch is very close to Division 5 (High Plateau) which includes Wickiup Dam, Chemult, Crater Lake, and Summer Lake.

For an excellent climate description see Central Oregon Climate and how it relates to gardening at http://extension.oregonstate.edu/deschutes/documents/GN1COClimate.pdf

La Pine is the nearest and most similar location for which records are published.  See below and also see La Pine Daily Records and Averages at weather.com

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