No more snow today. Photos taken yesterday at noon, a valiant crocus, buds on 'Katsura' and 'Bi-hoo' that has taken a red colour on young branches : The seedlings seem to have survived the -12°C. Those that are a bit twisted are from 'Ryusen' :
Sorry @Sulev , maybe the snow will help a little. But those are killing temperatures, for a lot of maples also. Indeed more crazy weather in the US, it seems we're each getting our turn. More the norm than the exception, in one way or another, I'm afraid. It will be interesting to see who suffers, but so far the laevigatums seem to be OK. As Alain shows, we're back to regular weather, about 9C and windy, bit of rain and mist, lovely.
Hi Margot, not too bad here in CT. Currently it is +4C and plenty of rain. Tonight it will go down to -7C, quite normal for February. The bad stuff is in the South, where they are not used to low temperatures, snow and ice. Power outages too.
So interesting to hear the different weather around the globe on the forum. -7°C for N @Nik will keep the trees asleep for some time in Connecticut, but thats not a bad thing IMO. At this moment in time here in the South of England it's 13°C , raining and the buds are swelling fast, too early for me as I know we will get frosts in April/ May when most have lovley young but tender leaves to burn. So N weather seems severe, but it does give the maples some protection. I'm holding off the late Winter/Spring prune until the beginning of March at the earliest. I have friends with large collections who have started already, we all our methods!!!!
Just rain here, 560mm/22" since the beginning of January. Highs/lows so far this year 12˚/-2.5˚, only gets cold when it's clear which is not often Jan/Feb.
Well, the long term forecast for the next two weeks suggests warmer than usual temperatures. I like that. For a reference, the normal climate for our town from Wikipedia. Still, it will be late April or early May when my Japanese maples leaf out.
Just watching the extreme weather on the news in Texas. 'Frightening'. The maps from N @Nik certainly shows the split in the US.
Just tired of snow... we got 5” today, up to 3” more tomorrow. And this is on top of the unmelted stuff from before. Sorry if I sound grumpy.. I am.
Such different cultures, such different memories... My late father and I love the snow in winter, my mother has always hated it, though they both were from the Tatra mountains. I was raised in "Massif Central" until I was six, and I remember, I liked the months of snow there... And the "vers-luisants", the glow-worms that my dad would put in a matchbox but they didn't glow the next day...
Hi Alain, don’t get me wrong, as a kid growing up in Southern Europe I loved the snow and playing outside in it. It’s a place with continental climate, hot summers and cold winters. Doesn’t seem to be the same anymore, my mom was saying they had several days in January and February with 15 to 17C. Unheard of when I was growing up. Barely any snow the past few years. With age and living in the US Midwest and now Northeast, I am now over it. I guess it is appreciated when it is rare.. The constant shoveling of the driveway in Feb, and driving in the snow gets to me nowadays. I am no longer excited about snow. Although I very much appreciate vacationing in Iceland in the middle of winter, go figure... it must be the Northern lights and the geothermal pools (both nonexistent in CT). Have not left town in the past year and a half though, because of COVID. But now, fully vaccinated, I am ready to travel (as soon as my husband gets his shots).
Here am I being blown away by 90 mph winds in a close proximity to a glacier in Southern Iceland. I loved it. If I experienced the same weather in our area, I would have hated it. Perception and location have so much to do with how we deal with weather...
I thought this is a cool map of yearly sunshine in Europe from Wikipedia. I grew up in the light orange zone. About the same latitude as where we live now, but very different climate. I suspect amount of sunshine is the same. It is quite sunny, even wintertime.
Green zone for me in South of England by the sea. So your more used to the warm stuff N. Can see why you've had enough of the snow now, lol.
Hi D, this is not temperature but sunlight, even frigid North Dakota has more sunshine than you or me.
The thaw has begun... mostly above freezing temperatures during the day next week. Everything should melt in few days.
I am just in awe re your photos N. The most amazing close up icicle photography. Hope the thaw doesn't cause you any water pipe problems I've been seeing on the news.
It was... 20°C this afternoon ! (68° F) Spotted this Misumena vatia (a kind of crab spider) this morning at the top of my potted Chinese quince :
That is very early for this to be seen Alain, normally mid Spring onwards. But 20° C is very Spring/Summer like. Shorts and T shirt time?
;-D Not yet... Many flowers on the Japanese apricot survived the deep freeze and the snow, lots of buds on the Japanese quince, and daffodils spreading more and more each year :
