Allotments 4 All

Help the homeless................!! :o ;D


I did read about Ahmeds shed in one of Trixies previous posts, sounds lurvely. I dont do envy Trix, it sounds fab and its lovely to have neighbours like that. Has all his dried corn gone yet?

They had a weatherman on the last 'Autumnwatch'. He said that the general concensus at the met office was for a 'milder than average winter, but colder than last winter' (being deliberately vague as ever). He also said it was going to be drier, which considering that last winter was one of the wettest recorded, that isnt saying much!

I personaly dont hold by some of these old wives sayings about winters. Lots of berries on bushes and trees? Just a sign of the right kind of weather when the flowering wood was formed, the flowers out and the berries forming. How can the plant know the future? I have watched a blackbird tucking into pyracantha berries already. What does that prove?

What is more informative is to look for patterns in th weather. In the last couple of years we have had dry summers and wet autumns, which last year was followed by a wet mild winter. This year we have had a dry spring, wet summer and (so far) dry autumn. The weather seems out of sync with the seasons so it migh be fair to guess the winter might follow the pattern of the autumn (like last year) and be dry and cool/cold. Who knows. Conversely if you look back to autumn 2005 we had a sharp cold snap in mid November, a bit like we have just expereinced. This weather was them followed by a colder winter. Is this a sign for this year? Who knows?

All I ask for is a winter that is not too cold, not as wet as last winter but be cold enough to bump off plenty of pests, especialy the slugs and snails, which as we know were worse this year because so many more survived the mild winter.

Quote from: Garden Apprentice on November 17, 2007, 00:45:49
How can the plant know the future?

And we now pass straignt over to the Met Office for the latest forecast presented by ... a stick of pyracantha !

Holly bushes will be giving out tips for Goodwood next !

Quote from: Vony on November 14, 2007, 17:52:16
The holly bushes around us are loaded with berries, another suggestion it might be a cold winter. Brrr.

Vony.

Quote from: Barnowl on November 15, 2007, 12:42:30
I think that a lot of berries on Holly means we had a wet summer - not a forecast for winter.

I think it's what you might term 'an old wives tale' plenty of berries in the hedgerows meant that nature 'was looking after its own' ie providing plenty for the lean months.

This year is a good year for berries, but I am sceptical about the forecasters 'coldest winter', the same as I was for the hottest summer.

If weather forecasters worked in the private sector of industry, they would be sacked for their failures, inaccuracies!!

Just a thought...

Could the abundance of berries mean a drop in numbers of birds?

Not in my back yard.

valmarg

Quote from: valmarg on November 17, 2007, 21:34:59
Not in my back yard.

valmarg

Nor mine!

Loads of sparrows, plus blackbirds, robins, dunnocks, doves and an unidentified migrant seen briefly.

Who else had an inch of snow last night??

Did you tim? we are not far from the colswolds I wondered how near it got
marg

Just wind and rain.  :'(   ;D ;D ;D

2 to 3 inches here. I was lovely....all gone by morning though.

Quote from: tim on November 19, 2007, 13:08:17
Who else had an inch of snow last night??

I would say a good two inches here.  A bit earlier than usual, we get the really nasty stuff in January/February.

valmarg

Havent had snow, but earlier this evening had a tremendous hail storm, complete with thunder and lightning. The hail fell so thick it looked like snow, and made the roads around the area pretty dicey for a while.

Dont know about a cold winter but I reckon its going to be a very peculiar one weatherwise I think, if recent days are anything to go by.

I agree AG think we are in for a bit of a bumpy ride. :-\

I am stocking up on Tinned food lucky enough i have a gas stove so if we loose power i can still make tea and some food. But if its bad now come jan & feb its going to be worse.

Q - With all this rain how to stop onion sets and garlic rotting in the ground?

In their latest seasonal forecast the Met Office do not seem to think that it is going to be a very cold winter ..

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/seasonal/winter2007_8/index.html

It was such a cold night last night, there was a monkey asking for a welder.

thats nowt ace.........this morning i had to snap a dog off a lampost!