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By Mark Freeman Mail Tribune November 10. 2014 4:34PM Late frost — but not the latest The first freeze of the season was expected this morning in the valleys of Southern Oregon, but even this late date falls far short of a record. "It's the first significant freeze of the year," says meteorologist Mike Petrucelli of the National Weather Service in Medford. The coldest places were expected to be Ashland, which was forecast to see temperatures in the high 20s early this morning, and the Illinois Valley. Elsewhere on the Rogue Valley floor, today's early-morning lows were expected to be about 30 degrees. The frost should be a one-and-done deal here, as cloud cover is forecast to move in and help take the edge off late-night lows, with temperatures reaching the high 50s in Medford today, Petrucelli says. "It'll all depend on how much cloud cover moves in," he says. Frost begins to form somewhere between 36 and 38 degrees. It becomes a freeze at 32. While this is a late start to freezing temperatures, it's far from a record in Medford. Weather Service records show that Nov. 29 was the latest Medford ever saw its first 32-degree hit, and that came in 1937. Last year's first 32-degree temperature came Nov. 21, and 2012 saw it hit freezing in Medford on Nov. 9. That means the past three Novembers saw three of the six latest first-freezing temperatures in Medford, according to the Weather Service. The weather is expected to be more extreme east of the Cascade crest. Klamath County and portions of Lake County are forecast to see sleet and freezing rain late Wednesday and early Thursday as this mass of cold air sweeps through. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 541-776-4470 or [email protected] . Follow him at www.twitter.com/MTwriterFreeman . http://www.mailtribune.com/article/20141110/NEWS/141119953 © 2015 Copyright © 1995-2011 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use Privacy Statement -->