DC's Mildest March Ever?

Given our heavy rains & strong winds last month, it's hard to think of March as "mild." But by one measure, DC broke a record:

Not once during March did the temperature fall below 33 degrees at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

This is the first time the area has had such a mild March in nearly 140 years of keeping records. 

And as Lowell reports over at Blue Virginia:

It turned out that this past heating season turned out warmer than normal. Today's Washington Post reports that "heating degree days"  ("an index of fuel consumption indicating how many degrees the average temperature fell below 65 for the day") this season are 3,622, compared to a normal of 3,711 and last season's 3,874.  Fewer degree days, of course, mean it's been warmer than normal this heating season.

As a result of the warm temperatures, DC's cherry blossoms are blooming earlier than usual. But what's "usual" for the cherry blossoms is changing thanks to global warming. According to a study by Smithsonian scientists, they're blooming about a week earlier than they once did.