So long for now, spring.

A powerful storm system is poised to dump a foot of snow in parts of the Upper Midwest a few days into spring. The National Weather Service says the system could dump anywhere from 5 to 14 inches of wet, heavy snow on Mower County.

A winter storm warning is primed for 6 p.m. Wednesday through noon Thursday in Mower County and much of southeast Minnesota.

A low pressure system that developed over Colorado will sweep across northern Iowa, southern Minnesota and central Wisconsin on Wednesday before hitting northern Michigan.

The system is expected to start with rain and a mix of precipitation throughout the day Wednesday before turning snow this evening. Snowfall rates of an inch or more per hour are possible, especially during the peak of the snow expected between 1 and 7 a.m. Thursday morning.

The most snow is expected around and north of Interstate 90 in southeast Minnesota with more rain and even thunderstorms to the south.

Along with the foot of snow expected in southeastern Minnesota through western Wisconsin, Green Bay, Wisconsin, is in the storm’s bull’s-eye.

NWS meteorologist Jim Skowronski says the storm could dump 8 to 14 inches of snow in central and east-central Wisconsin, with the heaviest snow falling during the day Wednesday.

In the south, forecasters said severe weather, including a tornado or two, could occur Wednesday afternoon and evening from near Dallas into the Ozarks before moving across the Mississippi River early Thursday.

In Austin, Wednesday’s high should reach 36 degrees before temperatures are expected to fall to 33 by 5 p.m. and to lows of 26 overnight. Thursday’s high will reach around 34. But don’t expect the latest batch of snow to stick around too long.

Weekend highs will hover around the upper 30s to low 40s, and temperatures could reach the 50s next Tuesday and Wednesday and the mid-40s the rest of the week.

How motorists can also prepare for the storm

•Check road conditions at www.511mn.org or call 511; with heavy moisture snow, it takes time to get roads back to good driving conditions.

•Be patient and remember snowplows are working to improve road conditions for your trip.

•Stay back at least five car lengths behind the plow, far from the snow cloud.

•Stay alert for snowplows that turn or exit frequently and often with little warning. Plows may also travel over centerlines or partially into traffic to further improve road conditions.

•Slow down to a safe speed for current conditions. Snowplows typically move at slower speeds.