CLIMATE. 
81 
lower than ten degrees below zero, and thirteen days in summer 
when the termometer rises above ninety. The growing season 
is somewhat shorter, owing probably to the altitude and the 
sandy soil and marshy condition of much of the land. Mauston, 
which is the county seat of Juneau county, has an average sea¬ 
son of 130 days between frosts as compared with 160 days at 
La Crosse to the west, 149 at Oshkosh, and 167 at Sheboygan at 
the east. Stevens Point has an average growing season of 126 
days. From the accompanying chart it will be noted that the 
growing season of the Wisconsin River Basin averages from 130 
to 140 days between killing frosts. There are many places 
with this basin, however, especially along the marsh land where 
killing frosts may occur any month during the year. 
The western part of Jackson county which ranges in elevation 
from one to three hundred feet above the eastern portion, falls 
within the southern Highlands Division as another climatic pro¬ 
vince in Wisconsin. This region is extremely rough and broken, 
and by consulting the chart it will be noted that a portion of 
this region has a growing season somewhat longer than the region 
in the Wisconsin River Basin. This region is almost entirely 
free from marshes; practically all of the land is well drained. 
From the appended table of average temperatures and rainfall 
from the station of Hatfield in Jackson county, it will be noted 
that the annual temperature is 44.1 degrees Fahrenheit, and 
the annual mean temperature is 30.62 inches. This rainfall is 
so distributed that the greater part of it comes during the grow¬ 
ing season, and while this is true, it frequently happens that 
during the latter part of the summer of some years, crops suffer 
from a lack of moisture. This is especially true on the soils 
of light texture, which predominate in the eastern part of the 
county. The average date for the last killing frost in the spring 
at Hatfield is May 20, and the day of the first killing frost in 
the fall is September 21, giving an average growing season of 
124 days. This is somewhat shorter than the period given for 
the whole Wisconsin River Basin. 
This short growing season as well as the sand soils aid in 
explaining the comparatively small amount of corn raised in 
this region, and the more extensive development of the potato 
industry. While corn does not always mature in this region, 
it can be safely grown as a crop for the silo, and for such use, 
the acreage could be materially extended. 
