It is really time for an update.
This morning, Feb 8, it was -7° after a night of snowfall. The weather since New Year’s Eve has so far been a jojo between extreme cold and full storm to severe thaw and now cold and snow again. I’ve been busy moving food kept outside in and out of freezers. Stupidly enough I decided that -15° was perfect for sorting my basement freezer, whereupon the temperature immediately rose 24° within hours …
So far I’ve spread salt and fed the birds #sarasspringcount24
It’s been a lovely day. I wait as long as I can before I go inside. I think everything grew at least a decimeter in the sunshine. Scilla are now outnumbering croci in the flowerbed.
Really hard to believe that it will snow all day tomorrow with a really cold morning.
Last thing I do is move my agapanthus, parsley and leak inside. Narcissi and primulas will be ok on the patio table.
The very first person to take a cold dip in the lake yesterday really did it the right day …
Filled the bird feeder and under the rhododendron there is still a feast on the rests after making an enourmous tropical fruit sallad for Easter Eve - shells and seeds from papaya and melon plus some ananas. Luckily my guests took most of the leftover food with them to the one family member that stayed home sick. Just enough left to heat up some dinner 👍🏻
Tuesday April 2…
This week will be a good test of what primulas and narcissi really can take. But I will have to wait until Friday before I see the result. Coming weekend spring will be back. So glad I mulched all branches yesterday. They would be all wet and soggy again.
I refuse to go further than the bins today. #sarasspringcount24
April 3 … Watch that ice on the window this morning
In the end last night, as temperature was down to -3°, I felt sorry for the plants on the patio table & moved them inside. Today we get a few hrs of thaw, no wind & sunshine before a a mix of snow and rain Thursday (although not that cold). I suppose they can go outside again & Friday spring is back.
These Primulas seem to be alright. Not so sensitive. Already planning where to plant them for next year.
Starting the day by straining my yellow beet sherry… time to fill up, not many bottles left.
Quite strong this time. It's always a lottery every time. Now it just needs to settle and clear for at least 6 weeks and then be stored for as long as possible, at least a year. As any port or sherry it only gets better with age.
And it’s really easy and cheap to make
200g of raisins + 2kg white sugar dissolved in the 2 l of hot water from cooking 1 kg of unpeeled and sliced beets for 2 hrs
Add another 3 l of water and put slices of hard rye bread, spread with 150 g of baking yeast, upside down on top
Put on a TIGHT lid and wait 1 month before straining, carefully not to include the bottom sediment
Bottling after 6 weeks when drinkable, but it sure improves with age as any strong wine #sarasspringcount24 @homebrew
Another 2 nights of frost and cold winds ahead before spring returns…
April weather has been really diverse.
This night it was -4° when I woke up at 6 am.
Parsley, leak and spring onions move out and in each day and the poor agapanthus is covered with a paper bag each night.
I’ll see if I can make a more thorough #garden update later today and perhaps even do some seed planting plus harvest the Jerusalem chokes. #sarasspringcount24
Anyway, what you can see from inside there are a multitude of bushes already with green leaves. It looks very lush compared to 3 weeks ago. The grass is growing fast too...
Almost time for mowing
Checking on the flowerbed beside the patio it has now gone through all the early colors with purple Crocus, blue Scilla and now reached the yellow anemones. Plus larger perennials like peonies and late tulips stick up.
The giant mountain ash that fell in the severe storm and rain 2 weeks ago is now almost completely taken care of. My neighbors have been better gardeners than me this last seven days of cold weather …
That storm and all the rain plus a week of really warm weather cheated many plants and bushes. The first flowers of the star magnolia froze last night. Only specimens depending on longer days are now bare. #sarasspringcount24 @gardening
8 am and temperature risen to +2°.
Time to move out the veggies and uncover the Agapanthus.
I’ll stay inside for at least a couple of hours more.
And if I do get outside I’d better take on gloves and a thick jacket. Another really windy day says the forecast. More coffe…
Considering the carpentry I’ve planned to be done inside. Also the planting of seeds even if it results in a huge mess.