Once this snow is over Marylanders can really start thinking of Spring. Although the Vernal Equinox won't arrive until 7:33 a.m. March 20, the meteorological Spring begins tomorrow.

In Baltimore, average high temperatures rise from 49 degrees to 59 degrees in March. The average lows creep up above freezing - from 29 to 38 degrees. It's a month of transition, of course. It can get much warmer, and colder. The record high for March in Baltimore is 90 degrees, reached in 1945. Anyone remember that day? The record March low was 5 degrees, recorded in 1873.

It can also snow. Although the average snowfall for March is just 2.4 inches, back on March 29-30, 1942, Marylanders were surprised by a Palm Sunday Storm that dropped 22 inches of heavy, wet snow on the city. Parts of western Maryland saw three feet.

Here's the NWS account of that storm:

"March 29-30, 1942: The Palm Sunday Snowstorm dumped the state's heaviest March snow on record in Maryland. The storm began as rain but changed over to a wet heavy snow. The snow stuck to power lines, trees and shrubs damaging them under its weight. Many of the fruit trees had begun to blossom.

"Over 20 inches fell over northern Anne Arundel, Howard, Southern and western Baltimore County, Carroll County, eastern and northern Frederick County, and north-central Washington County. Maximum amounts reported were 31 inches at Clear Springs (just 12 days earlier the temperature had reached 79?F here), 32 inches at Westminister, 30 to 36 inches at State Sanatorium (Frederick County) and 36 inches at Edgemont (Washington County).

"Baltimore City received its greatest snow in 20 years with 22 inches measured. Hagerstown and Westminister reported 22 inches in 24 hours. Frederick had 17 inches in 24 hours. Washington, DC received a total of 11.5 inches of snow."