Winter Weather

[Maggi Young]

We're back to howling wind and rain  - there will be snow on higher ground or inland I expect. Sounds really  bad with you Michael - good luck in keeping the glasshouses.

[Tim Ingram]

People who work on the land must always be more sensitive to the weather than most but this winter does seem more extreme than ever. One of our visitors to the garden to look at snowdrops who has been farming in Kent since the 1960's said he couldn't recall such a wet winter in all that time, and the recent winds certainly bring back to mind the 1987 gale. We are fortunate in having well drained soil and excess rains can drain away, and plants and gardens are resilient, but as my wife said our normally dry south-east weather, which has led us to concentrate on dry loving species of plants, is leading to some reconsideration. We are likely to have had 50% of our annual rainfall by the end of February.

[Maggi Young]

We are likely to have had 50% of our annual rainfall by the end of February.

I can well believe it.  I heard on the radio this morning that a month's worth of weather edit : that should be RAIN  - was expected today in some areas. I can believe that, too. 

[angie]

Wholesale destruction here with hundreds of trees down and a quarter of a million homes with no Electricity. Thankfully my greenhouses are still standing for the moment anyway. Another storm expected on Friday.

Michael hope your greenhouses will be safe. I haven't heard from my sister, think she is still waiting to get her internet connected.
When will this awful weather stop.

Angie 

[David Nicholson]

Probably the worst storm of the winter today certainly in terms of the volume of rain/hail that came down in a concentrated 4 hour spell this late morning/early afternoon, and the speed of the wind. Much of this coincided with one of our usual Wednesday jaunts that today meant crossing Dartmoor with some friends for lunch at one of the Dartmoor pubs. I certainly have never seen anything like it. Water was pouring from fields onto roads that are not usually ducted for drainage with water feet deep in places that meant for some pretty hairy driving (it had to be my turn too today!). Streams had turned into rivers overflowing their normal beds again into roadways, and rivers turned into torrents.

Why didn't you turn round and go back home did I hear you say? Well, we had tickets for a four for the price of two deal and, being a Yorkshireman I couldn't waste that could I   Best steak and ale pie I've had for some time too and that goes for the treacle sponge and custard too. Best part was as I drove there my mate had to drive back so that gave me a couple of pints of Jail Ale too. Bliss!

[Hoy]

We had destroying winds (and rain) before Christmas but not so mutch after that. It was also very mild till the middle of January, barely a few days with sub zero temps. January was very dry, and some places, especially along the coast, have had the driest winter for 100 years! It is still dry farther north and a lot of towns lack water!

It has also been many wildfires and 40-50 homes have burnt down. Wild animals are also dying of thirst!

February has been mild with no below zero temps at all here where I live but we have gotten some rain the last days.

In Longyearbyen, Svalbard the mean temp for the last 30 days is -1,5C, the normal is -16C. That is 15 degrees above normal for a very long period!

[Robert]

We finally received some rain. 18cm in 5 days. Our utilities were out for 5 days - back to heating and cooking with the wood stove.

18cm of rain gets us to 30% of average rainfall so we still have drought conditions, however it looks like our pattern might have changed as more rain is in the forecast. Good news for us. 

Thank you for all the weather reports from various location. I've been watching the weather for the last 50 years and it never fails to interest me.

[ArnoldT]

We're expecting 7-13 inches of new snow tonight. Running out of places to pile it.

[Tony Willis]

I will not need to water the crocuses for a while. The roof blew of the greenhouse at the height of the storm. They look a little windswept this morning!

[Pauli]

Here in Austria ther the wearher is also curious:
in Upper Austria (north of the alps) we are having one of the warmest and dryest winter on record (about 4 degrees above average, barely icedays), south of the alps they are having new records of snow!
I do do not remember snodrops flowering in the first half of February here, usually they start at the end of the month!

[David Nicholson]

I will not need to water the crocuses for a while. The roof blew of the greenhouse at the height of the storm. They look a little windswept this morning!

Sorry to hear that Tony, it's something I dread happening and luckily it hasn't yet.

[Steve Garvie]

I will not need to water the crocuses for a while. The roof blew of the greenhouse at the height of the storm. They look a little windswept this morning!

Really sorry to hear this.
I hope you can knock something together to protect your plants for the benefit of us all.

[Tony Willis]

Really sorry to hear this.
I hope you can knock something together to protect your plants for the benefit of us all.

It is fairly easy to sort out,just a mess and a bit of work. Nothing when you see what is happening to other people and their homes. Makes me feel ashamed I mentioned it

[shelagh]

Can I interest anyone in a joint hibernation next winter

[Maggi Young]

Can I interest anyone in a joint hibernation next winter

I'm interested, Shelagh - but I'm also toying with the idea of migration to warmer climes. 

Bit worried that there too there may be unseasonal weather - so perhaps hibernation is the safer option.