Editing Ashe County, North Carolina (section)

===Climate===
Ashe County has a considerably different climate than most of the [[southeastern United States]]. Summers typically average around 80 °F (27 °C). Temperatures rarely exceed 90 °F (32 °C), but on rare occasions can reach the mid-90s °F (~35 °C) as they did in 2012—the most recent that 90 °F+ (32 °C+) was observed. 100 °F+ (38 °C+) has never been observed. Summer nights are cool, and temperatures often dip to near 60 °F (16 °C), even in July. In winter there is snow, averaging about 30 inches (0.76 meters) for the towns of Jefferson and West Jefferson during the past thirty years. Considerably more snow falls on the peaks and the western slopes of the Appalachian Mountains. During the 2009–2010 snow season, Jefferson received some 60 inches (1.52 meters) of snow. Snow has been observed as early as around October 1 and as late as around May 1. Ashe County is also a very windy location, especially in winter, when several times each year the Jefferson Airport sees winds gusting 60 to 85 MPH (97 to 137 KPH). Combined with the winds typical for the region, Ashe County can also see extremely cold temperatures during winter. In January 2014, the low temperature dipped below 0 °F (−18 °C) several times, the coldest being −8 °F (−22 °C) on January 30–31.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.usclimatedata.com/climate/jefferson/north-carolina/united-states/usnc0346/2014/1|title=Weather history Jefferson - January 2014|website=www.usclimatedata.com|access-date=October 5, 2019}}</ref> During [[December 2022 North American winter storm|Winter Storm Elliott in December 2022]], Ashe County recorded an atypical low of −15 °F (−26 °C).<ref name="Weather report for December 2022">{{cite web |last1=Davis |first1=Corey |title=A Christmas Chill Decked December's Halls |url=https://climate.ncsu.edu/blog/2023/01/a-christmas-chill-decked-decembers-halls/ |website=North Carolina State Climate Office |access-date=March 4, 2024 |ref=12}}</ref> Single digit temperatures, often just above zero Fahrenheit, are observed occasionally in the winter months. The average winter high is around 45 °F (7 °C), with an average winter low near 20 °F (−7 °C). Despite its southerly latitude, these factors can make Ashe County experience winter conditions typically seen in the [[northeastern United States]].

The [[United States Department of Agriculture|USDA]] [[hardiness zone]]s range from Zone 6A (−10 °F to −5 °F or −23 °C to −21 °C) in northwestern Ashe County, to Zone 7B (5 °F to 10 °F or −15 °C to −12 °C) in areas along the county's southeastern border with [[Wilkes County, North Carolina|Wilkes County]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map {{!}} USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map |url=https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/ |access-date=2025-01-09 |website=planthardiness.ars.usda.gov}}</ref>