My first car was a 1956 Chevy. I always had trouble with it, starting and stopping. I got in the habit of parking it uphill so that I could "pop" the clutch, rolling down hill to get it to start. St Louis Springs are like that old car: starting and stopping!
The New Moon of February 22 will "wax" into the Full Worm Moon. We are well into the period of atonement (Lent) and Purim begins on March 8. "springs forward" on March 11. The "official" start of the Spring season is March 20th, over a month away! The traditional "last frost" of winter is April 15, even farther away. During these date markers, Spring in St Louis will start and stop several times.
How do I know that Spring has started, even if the calendar does not agree? Yellow daffodils rival the sun in their bright, buttery hues. Purple crocuses have burst through the brown of my neighbor's Zoysia grass. "Cool weather grasses" are bright green---can St Patrick's Day and the parades be far behind?
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Do not put your houseplants outside overnight yet. Do try planting tomato seeds (especially the heirloom varieties) indoors on a sunny windowsill in peat pots. Do try planting cool weather lettuces, like Mesclun, and spinach outdoors in a cold frame or protected location.
Rains will wash away the road salts. The water will soak the earth deeply and flow in rivulets across the landscape. The daffodils will nod their heads with the winds of Spring and may even bend their heads under a few wet snowflakes. Clouds of midges, fat horse flies, and a few brave mosquitoes are out early to feed the mating birds. St Louis' Spring will start and stop as the buds on the bushes and trees get plump and anxious to unfurl!