Laughing Ravens

Winter sowing jugs in the bright mid-Feb sunshine of 2024   Over the last three years, we've seen progressively warmer winters. Fewer weeks of snow cover. Sure, we've had the dips into really cold weather, but nothing surprising. Climate change in action. Last winter we saw more sun during the winter than we did during the summer. It was strange because it also came with very little snow cover. That can be really hard on plants which rely on that snow for insulation.   Our holding bed for shrubs and perennials that were either divided or propagated from cuttings, heeled into a deep bed of mulch last winter In our propagation holding bed, I often build up a thick layer of mulch to try to help insulate the plants that are being overwintered in pots. More than anything else it helps moderate the temperatures so that the wild swings from a sunny day to a bone-cold night are less damaging to the small rooted cuttings.   Two years ago, we had a decent amount of snow cover in Fe...

  We're heading into the deep freeze next week. Life near zero is weird. I don't want to know the inside of my house this well. I can't really blame the cold though. I always get stir crazy after surgery. Something about surviving the surgical event makes me want to run off into the distance and just keep running. It might be escaping the hospital or being able to get up from the surgical table... I don't know. But once I am up and under my own power, I want OUT! This week I had a piece of skin cancer removed from below my eyelid. My face looks like I tried to hail a bus with my cheek. Not pretty. I thought going to a plastic surgeon would make me look cute. It said that in the brochure. And now it is wicked cold.  Years ago, we would relish time like this. Snow on the ground. No snowmobiles on the trail. Nights cold and black like ice. You can hear the trees creak. The snow is still fluffy, but after the weekend chill drops, I expect the snow to squeak. Warm sun over t...