Tangled Branches: Cultivated
happenings in and around my zone 6b gardens in northern Virginia and in central Virginia
Monday, January 30, 2006
Weather, Bees, and ... Snowdrops
Remarkable weather, once again. 64 degrees at Dulles at 12:52pm. Astonishing to me is the fact that the record for today is 70 degrees and was set in 2002. Could it really have been that warm just 4 years ago? All the winters in recent memory have seemed cold and snowy to me.
Saturday was warm enough that bees were flying. There was one working on the snowdrops in early afternoon. By the time I got the camera it was gone, so no proof, but I promise I'm not making this up.
The snowdrops, which began blooming about the 19th or 20th of the month are now looking like genuine flowers instead of timid buds.
I received my catalog from Temple Nursery and have been rationalizing like mad (contradiction?) so I can spend $15 or so for a single blooming snowdrop plant/bulb. Reasons for: Lots of choices. Nowhere else can I get snowdrops "in the green". Reasons against: $15 (or $35!) for a single snowdrop. Plus shipping.
Several days ago there was no sign of my early narcissus, but just this morning I found the shoots pushing up and showing a few flower buds. Last fall I planted some Rijnveld's Early Sensation, but so far I don't see any evidence that I planted anything.
UPDATE, from this afternoon's forecast discussion from the NWS in Sterling:
WHAT HAPPENED TO JANUARY? SO FAR THIS MONTH THE AVE TEMP AT DCA IS 42.7F AND AT BWI 41.6F. THAT IS THE TENTH WARMEST JAN ON RECORD FOR BOTH LOCATIONS OUT OF 135 YEARS. THE AVE TEMP AT IAD IS 41.4F WHICH IS THE WARMEST ON RECORD OF 45 YEARS. FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN SAYING "IT FEELS LIKE MARCH" YOU ARE RIGHT! THE AVE HIGH TEMP THIS JAN AT DCA IS 50.8F AND THE LOW 34.5F...WHICH ARE THE AVE HIGH AND LOW FOR THE FIRST WEEK OF MAR. WITH TEMPS TOPPING OUT IN THE MID 60S THIS AFT... AND MID 40S TMRW... IT APPEARS LIKELY THAT THIS WILL END UP THE NINTH WARMEST JAN ON RECORD AT DCA... AND MAY TIE IN EIGHTH WITH 1974. THE MOST RECENT WARMER JAN WAS 1998 WHEN THE AVE TEMP WAS 43.0F.
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