Editing Victoria, British Columbia (section)

==Geography==
===Topography===
{{more|Geology of Vancouver Island}}
The landscape of Victoria was formed by [[volcanism]] followed by water in various forms. [[Pleistocene glaciation]] put the area under a thick ice cover, the weight of which depressed the land below present sea level. These glaciers also deposited stony [[sandy loam]] [[glacial till|till]]. As they retreated, their melt water left thick deposits of sand and [[gravel]]. Marine [[clay]] settled on what would later become dry land. Post-glacial rebound exposed the present-day terrain to air, raising beach and mud deposits well above sea level. The resulting soils are highly variable in texture, and abrupt textural changes are common. In general, clays are most likely to be encountered in the northern part of town and in depressions. The southern part has coarse-textured subsoils and loamy topsoils. Sandy loams and loamy sands are common in the eastern part adjoining Oak Bay. Victoria's soils are relatively unleached and less acidic than soils elsewhere on the [[British Columbia Coast]]. Their thick dark topsoils denote a high level of fertility which made them valuable for farming prior to urbanization.{{fact|date=October 2024}}

===Climate===
[[File:Victoria in Gray - Victoria, BC - Canada - 06 (8469127107).jpg|thumb|upright|left|Victoria in February, shortly after rainfall. The city has distinct dry and rainy seasons, with two-thirds of its annual rainfall coming from November to February.]]Depending on the classification used, Victoria either has a [[Warm-summer mediterranean climate|warm-summer Mediterranean]] or [[oceanic climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''Csb,'' [[Trewartha climate classification|Trewartha]]: ''Do'');<ref>{{cite web |title=Archived copy |url=http://koeppen-geiger.vu-wien.ac.at/pics/kottek_et_al_2006.gif |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111017125921/http://koeppen-geiger.vu-wien.ac.at/pics/kottek_et_al_2006.gif |archive-date=17 October 2011 |access-date=8 March 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Global Ecological Zoning for the Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 |url=http://www.fao.org/docrep/006/ad652e/ad652e07.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100721040959/http://www.fao.org/docrep/006/ad652e/ad652e07.htm |archive-date=21 July 2010 |access-date=2013-10-06 |publisher=Fao.org}}</ref> with fresh, dry, sunny summers, and cool, cloudy, rainy winters.<ref>{{cite journal
 |last         = Kottek
 |first        = M.
 |author2      = J. Grieser
 |author3      = C. Beck
 |author4      = B. Rudolf
 |author5      = F. Rubel
 |title        = World Map of the Köppen-Geiger climate classification updated
 |journal      = Meteorol. Z.
 |volume       = 15
 |pages        = 259–263
 |url          = https://opus.bibliothek.uni-augsburg.de/opus4/files/40083/metz_Vol_15_No_3_p259-263_World_Map_of_the_Koppen_Geiger_climate_classification_updated_55034.pdf
 |doi          = 10.1127/0941-2948/2006/0130
 |access-date   = 2007-02-15
 |year         = 2006
 |issue        = 3
 |bibcode = 2006MetZe..15..259K
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}}</ref>

Victoria is farther north than many "cold-winter" cities, such as [[Ottawa]], [[Quebec City]], and [[Minneapolis]]. However, [[Westerlies|westerly winds]] and [[Pacific Ocean#Climate|Pacific Ocean currents]] keep Victoria's winter temperatures substantially higher, with an average January temperature of {{cvt|5.0|C}}<ref name="Victoria Gonzales Hts"/> (Gonzales) and {{cvt|5.8|C}}<ref name="ccnuvic"/> ([[University of Victoria]]){{efn|name=a}} compared to Ottawa, the nation's capital, with {{cvt|-10.0|C}}.

At the Victoria Gonzales weather station, daily temperatures rise above {{cvt|30|C}} on average less than one day per year and fall below {{cvt|0|C}} on average only ten nights per year. Victoria has recorded completely freeze-free winter seasons four times (in 1925–26, 1939–40, 1999–2000, and 2002–03). 1999 is the only calendar year on record without a single occurrence of frost. During this time the city went 718 days without freezing, starting on 23 December 1998 and ending 10 December 2000. The second longest frost-free period was a 686-day stretch covering 1925 and 1926, marking the first and last time the city has gone the entire season without dropping below {{cvt|1|C}}.<ref name="Victoria Gonzales Hts"/>

During the winter, the average daily high and low temperatures are {{cvt|8|and|4|C}}, respectively. The summer months are also relatively mild, with an average high temperature of {{cvt|20|C}} and low of {{cvt|11|C}}, although inland areas often experience warmer daytime highs. The highest temperature ever recorded at Victoria Gonzales was {{cvt|39.8|C}} on 28 June 2021;<ref name="Daily Data Report for June 2021"/> The coldest temperature on record is {{cvt|-15.6|C}}, first set on 2 December 1941.<ref name="Victoria Gonzales Hts"/> The average annual temperature varies from a high of {{cvt|11.4|C}} set in 2004 to a low of {{cvt|8.6|C}} set in 1916.<ref name="Victoria Gonzales Hts"/>
[[File:Temperature time series Victoria BC Canada 1978 to 2019.jpg|thumb|left|385x385px|Time series of average temperatures during summer (June, July, and August) and winter (December, January, and February) in Victoria, BC from 1978 to 2019 (weather station data from ftp://ftp.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/noaa/). For comparison, the [[Global temperature record|Global surface temperature anomaly]] rose by just under one degree over the same period.]]
Due to the [[rain shadow]] effect of the nearby Olympic Mountains, Victoria is the driest location on the British Columbia coast and one of the driest in the region. Average precipitation amounts in the Greater Victoria area range from {{cvt|608|mm}}{{efn|name=a}} at the Gonzales observatory<ref name="Victoria Gonzales Hts"/> in the City of Victoria to {{cvt|661|mm}} at the [[University of Victoria]].<ref name="ccnuvic"/> The Victoria Airport, {{cvt|25|km}} north of the city, receives about 45% more precipitation than the city proper. Regional average precipitation amounts range from as low as {{cvt|406|mm}} on the north shore of the Olympic Peninsula<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?wa7544|title=SEQUIM 2 E, WASHINGTON – Climate Summary|access-date=9 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120404031139/http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?wa7544|archive-date=4 April 2012|url-status=live}}</ref> to {{cvt|3,505|mm}} in [[Port Renfrew]] just {{cvt|80|km}} away on the more exposed southwest coast of Vancouver Island. Vancouver measures {{cvt|1589|mm}} annually and Seattle is at {{cvt|952|mm}}.

One feature of Victoria's climate is its distinct dry and rainy seasons. Over 60% of the annual precipitation falls during the four wettest months, November to February at Gonzales Heights.{{efn|name=a}}<ref name="Victoria Gonzales Hts"/> However, at the University of Victoria, approximately {{cvt|5|km}} north, over 60% of the annual precipitation falls between the four wettest months, October to January.<ref name="ccnuvic"/> Precipitation in December, the wettest month ({{cvt|109|mm|disp=sqbr}}) is nearly eight times as high as in July, the driest month ({{cvt|14|mm|disp=sqbr}}).{{efn|name=a}}<ref name="Victoria Gonzales Hts"/> At the University of Victoria the wettest month is November with {{cvt|123|mm}}.<ref name="ccnuvic"/> Victoria experiences the driest summers in Canada (outside of the extreme northern reaches of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut).<ref>[http://www.climate.weatheroffice.gc.ca/climate_normals/index_e.html Climate Normals & Averages | Canada's National Climate Archive] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130627223111/http://www.climate.weatheroffice.gc.ca/climate_normals/index_e.html |date=27 June 2013 }}. Climate.weatheroffice.gc.ca (4 February 2013). Retrieved on 2013-07-12.</ref>

Victoria averages just {{cvt|26|cm}} of snow annually, about half that of [[Vancouver]]. Roughly one third of winters see virtually no snow, with less than {{cvt|5|cm}} falling during the entire season. When snow does fall, it rarely lasts long on the ground. Victoria averages just two or three days per year with at least {{cvt|5|cm}} of snow on the ground. Every few decades Victoria receives very large snowfalls including the record breaking {{cvt|100|cm}} of snow that fell in December 1996. That amount places Victoria 3rd for biggest snowfall among major cities in Canada.

With 2,193 hours of bright sunshine annually during the last available measurement period, Victoria is effectively tied with [[Cranbrook, British Columbia|Cranbrook]] as the sunniest city in British Columbia. In July 2013, Victoria received 432.8 hours of bright sunshine, which is the most sunshine ever recorded in any month in British Columbia history.<ref>{{cite web |title=Canada's Top Ten Weather Stories for 2013: Runner up Stories |url=https://ec.gc.ca/meteo-weather/default.asp?lang=En&n=5BA5EAFC-1&offset=12&toc=show#ru1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151204023113/http://www.ec.gc.ca/meteo-weather/default.asp?lang=En&n=5BA5EAFC-1&offset=12&toc=show#ru1 |archive-date=4 December 2015 |access-date=27 August 2015 |publisher=[[Environment and Climate Change Canada]]}}</ref>

Victoria's equable climate has also added to its reputation as the "City of Gardens". The city takes pride in the many flowers that bloom during the winter and early spring, including crocuses, daffodils, early-blooming rhododendrons, cherry and plum trees. Every March, the annual Greater Victoria Flower Count kicks off while the rest of the country and most of the province is still in the dead of winter.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Overall |first=John |title=Home |url=https://flowercount.com/ |access-date=2024-07-27 |website=Greater Victoria Flower Count |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[File:Aerial View of Victoria.jpg|thumb|left|Aerial view of Victoria's inner harbour facing to the east, taken in 2018]]

Due to its mild climate, Victoria and its surrounding area (southeastern Vancouver Island, [[Gulf Islands]], and parts of the [[Lower Mainland]] and [[Sunshine Coast (British Columbia)|Sunshine Coast]]) are also home to many rare, native plants found nowhere else in Canada, including ''[[Quercus garryana]]'' (Garry oak), ''[[Arctostaphylos columbiana]]'' (hairy manzanita), and Canada's only broad-leaf evergreen tree, ''[[Arbutus menziesii]]'' (Pacific madrone). Many of these species exist here, at the northern end of their range, and are found as far south as southern California and parts of Mexico.

Non-native plants grown in Victoria include the cold-hardy palm [[Trachycarpus fortunei]], which can be found in gardens and public areas of Victoria. One of these Trachycarpus palms stands in front of City Hall.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/scazon/3616999233/?q=city |title=City hall Victoria palm |publisher=Flickr.com |date=10 June 2009 |access-date=2013-10-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403065545/https://www.flickr.com/photos/scazon/3616999233/?q=city |archive-date=3 April 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{Victoria (Gonzales Heights) weatherbox}}

{{University of Victoria weatherbox}}

{{Victoria International weatherbox}}