Locarno is the northernmost municipality with a mild Mediterranean climate along a lake. It is thus one of the climatically nicest and also the warmest place in Switzerland. Nearly 2,300 hours of sunshine per year and an average annual temperature of 15.5° C result in an early start to spring, long hot summers with little rainfall and an autumn that lasts well into November. For this reason, many Mediterranean plants such as palm trees or lemon trees grow in Locarno.