Editing Bartow, Florida (section)

==Geography and climate==

===Geography===
[[File:Kissengen Spring flooded from Peace River backflow after 3 hurricanes passed through the area, October, 2005.jpg|220px|thumb|right|alt= flooded plain with oak trees in the distance|Flooding of the Peace River after a hurricane]] <!-- note hurricanes were in 2004 not 2005 as the picture says -->
Bartow is located slightly southwest of the geographical centers of both Polk County and peninsular Florida.<ref name="PolkVision/Our Region">{{cite web
| url        = http://polkvision.com/our-region/
| title      = PolkVision/Our Region
| access-date = 2010-10-17
| publisher  = PolkVision
}}</ref> The city is approximately {{convert|39|mi|km}} east of [[Tampa, Florida|Tampa]] and {{convert|51|mi|km}} southwest of [[Orlando, Florida|Orlando]].<ref name="Distance from Bartow to Tampa">{{cite web
| url = http://www.indo.com/cgi-bin/dist?place1=Bartow,+Fl&place2=Tampa,+Fl
| title = Distance from Bartow to Tampa
| access-date = 2010-10-17
| publisher = indo.com
}}</ref><ref name="Distance from Bartow to Orlando">{{cite web
| url = http://www.indo.com/cgi-bin/dist?place1=Bartow,+Fl&place2=Orlando,+Fl
| title = Distance from Bartow to Orlando
| access-date = 2010-10-17
| publisher = indo.com
}}</ref> The cities of Bartow, Lakeland, and Winter Haven form a roughly [[equilateral triangle]] pointed southward, with Bartow being the south point, Lakeland the west point, and Winter Haven the east point.<ref name="Publication 04-39-087">{{cite web
| url = http://fipr1.state.fl.us/fipr/fipr1.nsf/0/7bdd9643b1c47a2485256b2f00569595/$FILE/04-039-087Final.pdf
| page = 5
| title = Publication 04-39-087
| access-date = 2010-10-17
| publisher = University of Florida
| url-status = dead
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110816102319/http://fipr1.state.fl.us/fipr/fipr1.nsf/0/7bdd9643b1c47a2485256b2f00569595/%24FILE/04-039-087Final.pdf
| archive-date = August 16, 2011
}}</ref><ref name="Map of Bartow, Lakeland, Winter Haven showing 'triangle'">{{cite web
| url = http://www.indo.com/cgi-bin/dist?place1=Bartow,+Fl&place2=Orlando,+Fl
| title = Map of Bartow, Lakeland, Winter Haven showing 'triangle'
| access-date = 2010-10-17
}}</ref> The city is located near the [[headwaters]] of the [[Peace River (Florida)|Peace River]] at [[Lake Hancock (Florida)|Lake Hancock]].<ref name="Peace River Watershed">{{cite web
| url = http://www.protectingourwater.org/watersheds/map/sarasota_bay_peace_myakka/peace/
| title = Peace River Watershed
| access-date = 2010-10-17
| publisher = Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection
| url-status = usurped
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101015170317/http://www.protectingourwater.org/watersheds/map/sarasota_bay_peace_myakka/peace/
| archive-date = October 15, 2010
}}</ref> Bartow is located within the Central Florida Highlands area of the [[Atlantic coastal plain]] with a terrain consisting of flatland interspersed with gently rolling hills.<ref name="Florida's Geological History">{{cite web
| url = http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/uw208
| title = Florida's Geological History
| access-date = 2010-10-14
| publisher = University of Florida
}}</ref>

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], in 2000 the city had a total area of {{convert|11.4|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|11.2|sqmi|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.1|sqmi|km2}} (1.23%) is water. As a result of the annexation of over {{convert|26000|acre|km2}} of undeveloped land, primarily the Clear Springs land, the area of the city has quadrupled to over {{convert|52|sqmi|km2}} with more annexation still pending.

===Physiography and soils===
Bartow is located on the South Central Florida Ridge, as classified by the [[United States Department of Agriculture|USDA]].<ref name="MLRAs in FL">{{cite web
 |url=http://www.mo15.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/mlra_fl.html
 |title=MLRAs in FL
 |access-date=2010-09-10
 |publisher=USDA
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101008050915/http://www.mo15.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/mlra_fl.html
 |archive-date=October 8, 2010
 |url-status=dead
}}</ref> Most soils in the Bartow area are sandy; other soils have sandy surface layers and [[clay]] subsoils, and the eastern outskirts of town have a clay-rich floodplain through which the Peace River flows. Drainage outside of the floodplain ranges from good to excessive for the most part except for a poorly drained band which cuts across the northern part of town. Much of Bartow is built on the Fort Meade soil series, which is well drained, high in organic matter, and rich in [[phosphorus]], an uncommon combination in Florida, much appreciated by area gardeners.<ref name="Official Series Description -Fort Meade Series">{{cite web
| url = http://ortho.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/osd/dat/F/FORT_MEADE.html
| title = Fort Meade Series
| access-date = 2010-09-10
| publisher = National Cooperative Soil Survey
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101014083135/http://ortho.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/osd/dat/F/FORT_MEADE.html
| archive-date = October 14, 2010
| url-status = dead
}}</ref><ref name="Web Soil Survey">{{cite web
| url = http://websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov/app/WebSoilSurvey.aspx
| title = Web Soil Surbey
| access-date = 2010-09-10
| publisher = USDA
}}</ref>

===Climate===
{{See also|Climate of Florida|Climate of the Tampa Bay area}}
[[File:2004 hurricanes.jpg|180px|thumb|right|alt=a map of west central Florida showing the paths of three hurricanes whose convergence point is near Bartow|Paths of hurricanes Charley (blue), Francis (green) and Jeanne (red) in 2004]]
Bartow, like most of Florida, is located in the humid subtropical zone ([[Köppen climate classification]]: ''Cfa''). The climate of Bartow and other inland cities is slightly different than those cities on the coasts of Florida. Typically, the ocean or gulf tends to moderate the climate of cities on the coast. As Bartow is further from the coast than almost any other city in Florida, it tends to have higher daytime temperatures cooler temperatures at night. Regardless, the climate pattern prevalent throughout central Florida is evident in Bartow: hot, humid summers with frequent afternoon thunderstorms and relatively drier and milder winters.

On average, a tropical system brings hurricane-force winds to the Polk County area less than once every ten years, although the [[2004 Atlantic hurricane season|2004 hurricane season]] in which three hurricanes hit within 44 days was a case study in the [[law of averages]].<ref name="Forecast Of Atlantic Hurricane Activity For Oct. 2004">{{cite web
| url = http://hurricane.atmos.colostate.edu/forecasts/2004/oct2004/
| author1 = Gray, W.
| author2 = Klotzbach, P
| name-list-style = amp
| title = Forecast Of Atlantic Hurricane Activity For Oct. 2004
| access-date = 2010-09-29
| publisher = Colorado State University
| archive-date = August 21, 2014
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140821090959/http://hurricane.atmos.colostate.edu/forecasts/2004/oct2004/
| url-status = dead
}}</ref> Until 2004, the most recent storm to bring hurricane-force winds to the Bartow area had been [[Hurricane Donna]] in 1960.<ref name="2004 Hurricane Season Taught Polk to Stay Vigilant">{{cite news
| url = http://www.theledger.com/article/20100529/NEWS/5295022
| title = 2004 Hurricane Season Taught Polk to Stay Vigilant
| access-date = 2010-10-19
| newspaper = The Ledger
}}</ref>
While Florida's vulnerability to hurricanes is well known, hurricanes are not the most common severe weather threat seen in the Polk County area. The area is in the center of "lightning alley", the most concentrated lightning strike area in the United States.<ref name="alley">{{cite web|url=http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/news/lightning_alley.html|title=Staying Safe in Lightning Alley|access-date=September 24, 2007|publisher=[[NASA]]|year=2007|author=[[NASA]]}}</ref> Lightning is not the only threat from central Florida thunderstorms. The more severe storms bring the threat of tornadoes, although Florida tornadoes very rarely reach the size of those elsewhere in the United States. Even hail is not out of the question; one storm in March 1996 caused a one-foot accumulation of hail in areas of Bartow.<ref name="Florida Hazardous Weather By Day">{{cite web
| url = http://www.srh.noaa.gov/media/mlb/pdfs/FloridaHazardousWeather_Mar.pdf
| title = Florida hazardous weather by day
| access-date = 2010-09-16
| publisher = NOAA
}}</ref>

Freezes are an occasional occurrence in the Bartow area and can be a problem if temperatures remain below freezing for a sustained period of time. On average, the area can expect an annual minimum temperature of {{convert|32|F}}, putting it in plant [[hardiness zone]] 10a. Snow is a rare phenomenon in the area, perhaps a few times every century.<ref name="Snow, Sleet Pelt Frigid Polk">{{cite news
| url = http://www.theledger.com/article/20100109/NEWS/1105044
| title = Snow, Sleet Pelt Frigid Polk
| access-date = 2010-09-27
| newspaper = The Ledger
}}</ref>

{{Weather box|width=auto
|location = Bartow, Florida, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1892–present
|single line = Y

|Jan avg record high F = 83.2
|Feb avg record high F = 85.4
|Mar avg record high F = 87.9
|Apr avg record high F = 91.3
|May avg record high F = 94.6
|Jun avg record high F = 96.2
|Jul avg record high F = 96.3
|Aug avg record high F = 95.9
|Sep avg record high F = 94.4
|Oct avg record high F = 91.5
|Nov avg record high F = 87.4
|Dec avg record high F = 83.7
|year avg record high F = 97.3

| Jan high F = 72.9
| Feb high F = 75.9
| Mar high F = 79.7
| Apr high F = 84.2
| May high F = 88.7
| Jun high F = 90.9
| Jul high F = 91.9
| Aug high F = 91.7
| Sep high F = 89.7
| Oct high F = 85.2
| Nov high F = 79.0
| Dec high F = 74.7
|year high F = 83.7
|Jan mean F = 61.2
|Feb mean F = 64.0
|Mar mean F = 67.7
|Apr mean F = 72.5
|May mean F = 77.6
|Jun mean F = 81.1
|Jul mean F = 82.3
|Aug mean F = 82.3
|Sep mean F = 80.7
|Oct mean F = 75.5
|Nov mean F = 68.3
|Dec mean F = 63.6
|year mean F = 73.1
| Jan low F = 49.5
| Feb low F = 52.1
| Mar low F = 55.7
| Apr low F = 60.8
| May low F = 66.4
| Jun low F = 71.3
| Jul low F = 72.6
| Aug low F = 72.9
| Sep low F = 71.8
| Oct low F = 65.9
| Nov low F = 57.5
| Dec low F = 52.6
|year low F = 62.4

|Jan avg record low F = 34.1
|Feb avg record low F = 37.2
|Mar avg record low F = 42.4
|Apr avg record low F = 50.2
|May avg record low F = 58.8
|Jun avg record low F = 67.8
|Jul avg record low F = 70.3
|Aug avg record low F = 70.5
|Sep avg record low F = 67.4
|Oct avg record low F = 53.2
|Nov avg record low F = 44.1
|Dec avg record low F = 37.6
|year avg record low F = 32.3

|Jan record high F = 90
|Feb record high F = 91
|Mar record high F = 97
|Apr record high F = 99
|May record high F = 101
|Jun record high F = 103
|Jul record high F = 102
|Aug record high F = 100
|Sep record high F = 98
|Oct record high F = 97
|Nov record high F = 96
|Dec record high F = 90
|year record high F =
|Jan record low F = 18
|Feb record low F = 22
|Mar record low F = 23
|Apr record low F = 34
|May record low F = 45
|Jun record low F = 56
|Jul record low F = 60
|Aug record low F = 61
|Sep record low F = 55
|Oct record low F = 32
|Nov record low F = 25
|Dec record low F = 18
|year record low F =
|precipitation colour = green
| Jan precipitation inch = 2.66
| Feb precipitation inch = 2.10
| Mar precipitation inch = 2.84
| Apr precipitation inch = 2.72
| May precipitation inch = 2.95
| Jun precipitation inch = 8.28
| Jul precipitation inch = 7.56
| Aug precipitation inch = 7.78
| Sep precipitation inch = 7.31
| Oct precipitation inch = 3.03
| Nov precipitation inch = 1.49
| Dec precipitation inch = 2.16
|year precipitation inch = 50.88
| unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
| Jan precipitation days = 6.0
| Feb precipitation days = 5.2
| Mar precipitation days = 5.5
| Apr precipitation days = 4.8
| May precipitation days = 6.5
| Jun precipitation days = 13.0
| Jul precipitation days = 15.0
| Aug precipitation days = 15.7
| Sep precipitation days = 12.3
| Oct precipitation days = 7.0
| Nov precipitation days = 4.4
| Dec precipitation days = 5.5
| year precipitation days = 100.9
|Jan snow inch =
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|unit snow days = 0.1 in
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|source 1 = NOAA<ref>{{cite web
| url = https://w2.weather.gov/climate/xmacis.php?wfo=tbw
| title = NOWData – NOAA Online Weather Data
| publisher = [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]
| accessdate = May 23, 2021
}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
| url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&startDate=0001-01-01&endDate=9996-12-31&stations=USC00080478&format=pdf
| title = Summary of Monthly Normals 1991&ndash;2020
| publisher = [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]
| accessdate = May 23, 2021
}}</ref> }}