May 18, 2016...
By Lori
14 comments
“It was the best of times…it was the worst of times…”
The greenhouse in it’s new spot…
and the stream…burbling along.
After a long and tedious, confused and confusing winter that arrived when we usually have our spring, our long delayed spring has been dry and cold. For the first 18 days of this month we’ve had frost warnings and the buds of the trees are very slow to open, and for the past 18 days daytime temps are barely into the double digits (Centigrade)..
The maple sap run was either a complete success or a complete disaster depending upon where in the province you found yourself. Temperatures must be within a thin range, above and below the freezing mark…above in daylight and below in darkness…but only just. We had that pattern for a few days and then winter returned and then after a week it would restart… Ergo the sap run was on again off again. Rain is also required in April nearing the end of the sap run to spur the uptake of moisture by the trees and to unfurl the new leaves… we had bitter winds and a little snow. Things looked promising at the first of April but soon took a steep decline…it was COLD. I left mulches on only to find that the soil remained frozen solid under the mulch…but to remove the mulch exposed the tender perennial sprouts to dry cold winds. The sun was the only saving grace. In the wind-sheltered spots where the sun was direct things came along well..but in the more exposed situations the delay was very noticeable. The snow remained in scattered pockets of the forest well into this month and only the rain finally melted it.
We have had a couple of rainy days in May and that has helped the trees and the lawns become green again. With the warmth the blood loving insects have returned making work outdoors a misery, just when I’m chomping at the bit to get out there! I have to dress like a swamp monster bride, swathed in green mesh to keep the creepy crawlies out of my clothing and my hair…
cue Mendelssohn… and hand me that rake!
With the rain came the wildflowers and the birds. Today I saw my first bumblebee! I’m hoping for an end to this cold ice age and looking forward to writing a blog about how lovely a summer it’s been!
- 19 May, 2016
- 8 likes
More blog posts by Lori
Previous post: *"Spring" 2016 ... I give up!*
Next post: June 6, 2016- Discoveries...the lost is found.
Comments
yes the weather is topsy-turvy isn't it. some healthy looking plants on the go.
19 May, 2016
Oh Lori, how do you keep from getting depressed? Just hang on to thoughts of the glory to come! Did you manage to get your maple syrup?
19 May, 2016
You made me chuckle Lori....swamp bride! I'm sorry it's been so dire..this is not what we expect of your part of the world at all. We just don't know what to expect these days....anything can happen. We even had a whole WEEK of sunshine in Scotland last week. Incredible! But back to usual now with fog and rain. Stay positive and keep applying the insect repellant....yuck! :) x
19 May, 2016
Yes Lori, Karen and I have had a whole week of sunshine here in Scotland. I did so much gardening. Now it is raining and I feel depressed that perhaps summer has been and gone. I have potting up to do but it is miserable out there. You have a better chance of warm weather than us.
19 May, 2016
Tale of two cities? Charles Dickens I'm glad you are very well read. I hope Spring arrives for you to stay. Are you growing vegetables this year? What kind? Love your greenhouse.
19 May, 2016
Nah Linda...we have more good weather to come yet...I can feel it!....might not be till September.......;)
19 May, 2016
It's averaging 20 cooler here in New York. Global Warming?!
19 May, 2016
That's what you call dedication - suffering all that cold, waiting longer for the Spring, contending with your deer and then being inundated with nasty little biting things!
Remind me not to complain about our good old British weather. Looks as if the plants are fighting back and starting to spring into life now. Love the red unfurling fern and of course the violets, who can resist them?
19 May, 2016
Hello Johnjoe, you're a new face to me! thanks...I surely will. Hope your summer is a good one, too.
I'm so glad for you folks in Scotland.. your weather is usually very much like ours except that your winters don't last as long and you don't get as much snow. The weather patterns have been schizoid here. It gets warm for a few days and we think...At last!...spring has arrived. Then winter returns with a nasty blast and we sit indoors, dazed and confused by the frost and snow! I'm reminded of a history lesson about the effects of dust in the upper atmosphere... the summer of 1816... 200 years ago there was no summer in the northwest corner of North America as the result of a huge volcanic eruption in Indonesia. the dust cloud circled the globe many times and there was famine and cold temps worldwide. There is a volcano erupting in Costa Rica, most recently and before that one in Alaska...and I seem to recall that there was some activity in the far east... It's a primer on how complicated our little blue marble's weather is connected to seismic activity. ...as well as humanity's contribution, of course. Good luck to us all!
This year I'm growing veggies, Bathgate!... I'm just now able to cultivate and it will be a while longer before the soil is warm enough to plant seeds. The herbs are up and doing though...chives, oregano, thyme & mint so far. Kale, onions, cukes, lettuce, beets and carrots in the garden and tomatoes in a planter in the greenhouse. fingers crossed! 20 degrees cooler in NY? OMGoodness!
I didn't even attempt to tap trees this year, Stera! In March to snow was too deep...the weather too unsettled..and my aging knees not quite up to slogging through the snow! I know I'm going to miss it, but maybe next year?
Things have been soooo slllooowww..., Seaburngirl. Things are usually well on their way by the 24th of May..but not in my garden, this year!... I'm hopeful though.
Karen and Linda: did you see the Youtube video sent to NASA by the Inuit...how they say the sun doesn't rise in the same place it used to!? I just hope the northpole remains where it is! The snow wasn't completely gone here until this month! mukluks and igloos? ;-) nahhh...
I love the redfern too, Honeysucklegold! the osmunda are unfurling now too and they are very tall and stately.. the unfurled fronds are eaten as a vegetable here. Ever had "fiddleheads"? Not to my taste, but some consider them a delicacy.
19 May, 2016
hi Lori..this is an interesting blog..i'm in SW Ontario, near Port Huron, Michigan..we're supposed to be a little "banana belt", but not this year, for sure..we've had the same kind of weather as you..Rats!...re your insects..i tuck scented dryer sheets in my sleeves, pockets, bra..sometimes socks..works well for me..keeps the hungry hordes away, might try rubbing my arms with one or two , see if that works as well..don't know about blackflies..i used to live in the bush, on a farm in Gateneau...miss it..
23 May, 2016
Were you referring to the Krakatoa eruption?
23 May, 2016
Hi Pat...Gatineau is lovely. It's Ottawa's cottage country. going to try the dryer sheets thing...lol. that sounds a lot better than DEET.
Hi Bathgate... no it was the mountain of Tambora in the Philipines which blew off the whole top of the mountain. That was 1816. Krakatoa erupted in1883 and there were similar effects on the climate then, too.
24 May, 2016
Hi Lori its always nice to hear from you with your on going fights against and with nature you could easily write a book of your recollections .. did you see the Arisaema triphyllums you kindly sent me are blooming once more I'm always thrilled to see them , I remember reading up about the Fiddlesticks when you last mentioned them I'm not sure that I would fancy them very much , will PM you !
31 May, 2016
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Loved your blog, Glasshouse, and all photo are grate. It looks wild and exciting place enjoy the rest of your summer. Thank you Lori.
19 May, 2016