Did The Groundhog Get It Right?
February 22, 2020 by New Hampshire Garden Solutions

On Sunday, February 2nd Punxsutawney Phil, King of the weather predicting Groundhogs, didn’t see his shadow when he was removed from his burrow. Some might think that this simply meant that Phil woke under a cloudy sky, but it meant far more than that to The King; he immediately declared that we would see an early spring. So, bolstered by Phil’s decree, I went off in search of spring. As you can see by the above photo, I didn’t find it; at least not right away. In fact all it has done is snow since Phil made his announcement.

This is what it looked like one morning on my way to work. Yes, it was cold too. Since Phil’s decree we reached 8 below zero F. one night; the coldest it’s been all winter. I’m voting we leave Phil in his burrow next year and let him sleep until he wants to wake up.

“Red sky at night, sailor’s delight” the old saying goes, so this beautiful evening sky gave me hope that the weather would turn.

As of this writing we’re still getting a storm each week but they’ve carried little snow. What you see here amounts to maybe 4 inches at most. After every storm it warms up and melts a lot of the snow that fell. I read recently that scientists studying our dwindling snow cover have found that trees are suffering, because when the insulating qualities of snow are gone the soil can freeze deeper, and this can kill a tree’s feeder roots. Instead of expending energy of growing new leaves and branches trees have to divert their energy to re-growing their roots. Without the life giving energy from photosynthesis that more leaves provide a tree can weaken, and that increases the possibility of attacks from insects and fungi.

When you plow even 4 inches into a pile it looks like a lot more.

But it’s melting in the woods, as this patch of American wintergreen shows. All those plants and I couldn’t find a single berry. When I was a boy my grandmother often took me walking through the woods to teach me what she knew about wild plants. One of the first plants I remember getting to know is the Eastern teaberry (Gaultheria procumbens,) also known as checkerberry or American wintergreen. My grandmother and I would pick the small red berries from the plant she always called checkerberry until we each had a handful, and then we would have a refreshing, spicy feast in the forest. Chewing the leaves can also be refreshing when hiking on a hot day. In the past, the leaves were also chewed by Native Americans to relieve pain.

Lilac buds showed no signs of opening but they did look like they might be swelling some. We dug a hole where I work and found that the frost is only 5 inches down in the ground. It’s usually much deeper and can reach nearly 4 feet in very cold winters. That’s why all of our water pipes have to be buried at least 4 feet deep, otherwise they could freeze and burst.

I always start checking American Hazelnut (Corylus americana) bushes early for signs of life. So far the male catkins aren’t doing much and I haven’t seen any of the tiny female flowers either, but it won’t be too long. I have a feeling they’ll be early this year. When the catkins open there will be a single bright, yellow-green, male flower peeking out from under each of those diamond shaped bud scales. They grow and bloom in a spiral down the length of the catkin.

I’ve always assumed that migrating birds ate the staghorn sumac berries because nothing touches them until spring. There are thousand of berries in this one photo and not one of them has been eaten, even though I heard robins nearby. I also saw black capped chickadees and dark eyed juncos.

Nothing had been eating the wild grapes hanging from this pine tree either. I was surprised because grapes usually do get eaten quickly.

I wanted to just sit by the river and think one day-I was in that kind of mood-but every stone was covered with ice and snow so there was no dry place to sit. This is what the shoreline looked like; a half inch of ice covered everything.

But the river itself remains unfrozen. So far it hasn’t frozen over in any of the usual places this winter.

Sometimes in spring the river fills itself from bank to bank but so far this year it’s shallow enough to walk across. You’d think it was August by this photo but since we’ve had so little snow to fill it with snowmelt I wasn’t surprised.

The trees in this photo are tipped with gold and that’s a sure sign that things are changing. I think they were poplars but I couldn’t get close enough to find out for sure. Poplar buds swell early and some species have catkins that look like pussy willows.

Red maple flower buds (Acer rubrum) are small and round or oval with short stalks and 4 pairs of bud scales. The bud scales are often purple like those seen here. They have a fine fringe of pale hairs on their margins and when they start to open a tomato red color can be seen between the scales. Red maples can be tapped and syrup made from their sap but the sap gatherers have to watch the trees carefully, because the sap can become bitter when the tree flowers. Seeing the hillsides awash in a red haze from hundreds of thousands of red maple flowers is a treat that I always look forward to. Unfortunately I’ve found that it’s almost impossible to capture that beauty with a camera.

Crocus leaves poked up out of the ice.

And daffodils poked up out of the soil in a raised bed. They were a surprise.

But the biggest surprise of all came in the form of spring blooming witch hazels (Hamamelis vernalis) blossoming. Until now the earliest I’ve ever seen them bloom was February 23rd but these bloomed a full week earlier. Their strap like petals can curl up into the bud if it gets cold and then unfurl again on warm days, so you don’t see too many that have been frost bitten.

There was a large building between me and the witch hazels but I could still smell their wonderful, clean fragrance. It’s so good to see them again; I was ready for spring a month ago so I’m glad the groundhog got it right.

It starts with a gentle southerly breeze; a soft, warm breath. The sun grows stronger and its warmth penetrates the soil a little deeper each day, and as the soil warms the yearly miracle will begin. Once started it won’t be stopped; sap is starting to flow and soon buds will swell to bursting. An indescribable beauty will cover the earth and as usual I will be here, trying to describe the indescribable. I do hope you’ll be able to get out there and see it for yourself. It’s so much better than reading about it.
Spring is when you feel like whistling, even with a shoe full of slush. ~Doug Larson
Thanks for stopping in.
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Posted in Nature, Things I've Seen | Tagged American Hazelnut Catkins, American Wintergreen, Ashuelot River, Canon EOS Rebel T6, Crocus Leaves, Daffodil Shoots, Lilac Buds, Maple Sap Run, Native Plants, Nature, New Hampshire, NH, Olympus Stylus TG-870, Poplar, Red maple Buds, Red Sky at Night, River Grapes, Spring, Staghorn Sumac, Swanzey New Hampshire, Vernal Witch hazel, Winter Hiking, Winter Plants, Winter Woods | 29 Comments
A fine assortment of photos, as usual!
I’m wondering… could the grapes you show actually be the fruit of Virginia-creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) or maybe even Thicket-creeper (P. inserta)? I can’t see the tendril details that I’d need in order to decide one way or the other, but maybe you can provide additional info.
Thank you Josh. They grew up over my head so I couldn’t touch them and I never saw the trunk but they were bigger than Virginia creeper berries and they didn’t have the splayed, hand like configuration of a Virginia creeper fruit cluster. They hung in bunches, more like grapes. I’ve never seen Virginia creeper fruit in winter in any case, because it gets eaten almost immediately in this area. The birds love it and even getting a photo of the blue fruit against the red leaves in the fall is tough because they go so fast.
Wow, that was quite the exchange! Food for thought. I love your blog and appreciate what you do!
I was wondering if you have been to Madame Sheri’s Forest in Chesterfield? I haven’t been there yet but would like to. Do you take any company on your walks? I live about an hour from Keene.
My vernal witchazel, ‘Jelena’ is a sight to behold right now!
Thank you so much, you are so prolific with beautiful photos and words, Jane
You’re welcome, and thank you Jane. Yes, I have been to Madame Sherrie’s many times. Here is a blog post I did on it a few years ago: https://nhgardensolutions.wordpress.com/2016/10/19/indian-pond/
I have been on hikes with friends and family but I usually go out alone. I think most people would find it a very boring experience to be honest because I’m far more interested in nature than people when I’m in the woods. If you want to write me through the “Contact me” page we can talk about it.
I’m glad you have a vernal witch hazel. I don’t, but I know where plenty of them grow and I visit them often at this time of year.
So far, we have had a very mild winter with no snow and very few frosts. So, we have daffodils, primroses, celandines and even cowslips in bloom – a good month or more early! The ground is sodden from all the rain and the farmers can’t get onto the fields and in some cases the crops are rotting under inches of water.
I loved seeing all your signs of spring and hope that the maple syrup harvest has no problems this year. The witch hazel is a beauty!
Thank you Clare. I envy your flowers, but not your weather. I hope they’ll be able to get crops in on time. It’ll be tough going if they don’t, I would think.
I think everyone hopes for a good maple sugaring season. It’s so high priced now few can afford the real thing.
It’s gorgeous stuff!
It should be at that price!
Hah!
I very much appreciated your conversation with Ron in the comments section of this post. Thank you for expressing yourself so politely but clearly.
Your observation about lack of snow in winter actually harming trees was most interesting.
I like Ron and I enjoy speaking with him about his observations of nature in Peru. He’s a very smart man with a scientific mind but when it come to politically charged subjects that’s where we part ways. It isn’t that I don’t care about climate change, I most certainly do, but there are other places it is better discussed than here. In any event I hope I didn’t hurt his feelings because that’s not what I’m about.
I knew lack of snow cover meant less moisture for the trees, but it turns out that it means much more than that.
Plants get an odd mix of temperature messages in unusual years, which there seem to be more and more of from what I can tell. We’ve had clear mornings down in the 20s that soar into the low 60s during the day. Spring does seem to be on the way, though. Signs of it are everywhere.
Thank you Lavinia. Yes, I saw more signs of spring today, but it’s coming early. We’re having a warm stretch right now but there is still plenty of time for more winter.
Here in the UK when I was taught the “red sky” rhyme it was shepherd’s rather than “sailors’. But then my mother lived as a child in the country and far away from the sea. 🙂
Thank you Ben. Susan from London said her family said it that way too. I don’t know where “sailor” came from. We have sea shore but it’s 2 hours away.
Another of life’s little mysteries then. 🙂
Yes. Someday I’ll have to try to find the origins of the sailors and shepherds.
Oh yes! That witch hazel is a beauty, for sure. A full and beautifully shaped specimen of hamamelis virginiana, which grows in the hospital landscape nearby, is in full bloom. Spring is advancing! Nice to see you have some bulbs poking up. Now, if March weather will just behave, huh?
Yes, March can be a real bear! Last march it got cold enough to harm the maple sugar industry.
Thank you for this! I’ve learned so much about my land from your blog. When I moved to the countryside about 2 years ago, I was overwhelmed by all the things I didn’t know. Going for long walks teaches me to take it easy. The learning never stops and nature always manages to surprise us anyway!
Thanks very much Anna, I’m happy to hear that. Nature will indeed teach you more than you ever thought possible!
What’s awesome is that I live in New Hampshire myself. The pictures you share of things growing really help me identify things in my own backyard. I live in an old house from the 1700s with a mature landscape full of overgrown gardens. I’m hoping to restore it to it’s former glory. Thanks again.
That sounds like a wonderful house and garden! I’m guessing you probably have lilacs, peonies, cabbage roses, Forsythia, myrtle and irises in your gardens. Those are all plants that neighbors gave neighbors in the 1700s, and I still find them growing and blooming beautifully around cellar holes out in the woods. If you get stuck on a plant just send me a photo and I’ll see if I can help you identify it.
Really nice to see your beautiful photos of the harbingers of spring, Allen. We’re getting harbingers of fall here in S. Chile.
But your “dwindling snow cover”? Must be local, which is not unusual. It’s exactly the opposite for most of the U.S. and the rest of the world: https://youtu.be/an4j2vyOBN8
And, it’s gotten even colder and snowier this winter.
Reason: Not “global warming,” but increasingly low sunspot activity, which is tied to colder and snowier weather, a phenomenon first observed by Galileo in the 1600s: https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2019/02/nasa_extreme_low_sunspot_counts_indicate_global_cooling_onset.html
We are entering a Grand Solar Minimum, which means a return to the very cold conditions of the Little Ice Age, which began in 1300, peaked in 1700, and ended around 1870. https://www.eh-resources.org/timeline-middle-ages/
We had better hope, for our food security, that CO2 causes global warming, but it is now clear that it doesn’t because the demonstrably cooler temperatures over the last 20 years and between 1940 and 1980 do not correlate with the steady, uninterrupted rise in CO2 ppm. Solar cycles do, though.
On Sat, Feb 22, 2020, 6:06 AM New Hampshire Garden Solutions New Hampshire Garden Solutions posted: ” On Sunday, February 2nd > Punxsutawney Phil, King of the weather predicting Groundhogs, didn’t see > his shadow when he was removed from his burrow. Some might think that this > simply meant that Phil woke under a cloudy sky, but it meant far more than > that t” >
Thank you Ron. Anyone can go on youtube and say anything they want but the vast majority of scientists say the earth is warming, and the earth itself says the same thing. I wouldn’t be surprised if this winter set records for the warmest yet in the United States. All you need to do is look around to see it and I see it every day.
You didn’t have time to watch those links before you responded, Allen. You should. You will learn inconvenient truths. You’re never too old to learn.
Facts is what is important, not feelings. Not “consensus,” not prevailing thought, because if we relied on that, we would still think the world is flat.
I mean that if you do that, you should be impressed by 31,000 scientists saying that there is no threat due to “man-caused global warming.” See: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.forbes.com/sites/larrybell/2012/07/17/that-scientific-global-warming-consensus-not/amp/
You do a great job wlth your website and I really enjoy it. But, your global warming mantra stands out. You really need to look past the alarmists’ propaganda on their mainstream media, which is designed ultimately to get you to agree to total “life or death” control over you by your communist rulers–by their own admission in obscure publications. Take a deep breath, relax, and look carefully at what the so-called “deniers” have to say about this issue. Don’t just ignore or gloss over the links I provide you and hurry to an immediate knee-jerk reply. You and many others have been fooled by rich control-freaks with a totalitarian World Government and NWO agenda.
For the factual background, see this for starters: https://youtu.be/sES6_OXPwOU
First, let’s get one thing straight from the get go, Ron; I have no mantra, no agenda, climate change, political, or otherwise. I’m simply a student of nature reporting what he sees, and what I’ve seen lately are the two warmest winters we’ve had since I’ve been on this earth. If you want to believe that there is a magical little pocket of New Hampshire where this happens and doesn’t happen anywhere else, feel free. However if you read back on this blog to previous winters you’ll see that I also reported on very cold winters and heavy snows.
I’m not out to convince anyone of anything. I simply want people to know how beautiful nature is so they’ll get out and experience it for themselves. If they do that they’ll fall in love with what they see and will be less likely to destroy it. But doing that takes a lot of time; this blog doesn’t just write itself. I have to take hundreds of photos and then choose what I think are the best before I start writing, and the writing can take days. So no, I don’t have time to watch all these video links that you send. I did the first time you sent them and it took hours, only to find at the end that the person in the videos is described as “The worst source of climate information on the internet.”
You should know that I can edit any comment on this blog or block them entirely if I choose. I haven’t done that to yours because I know the readers here are intelligent people and I let them make up their own minds. BUT, I’m not going to let this blog become a soapbox used to promote anyone’s beliefs, be they religious, political, scientific or otherwise. Your beliefs are just that-yours, and I have no reason to doubt or want to change what you believe. I simply ask that you stop trying to make me believe what you believe. If what you believe is the truth then it will reveal itself as such, and then I’ll climb on board. The truth of nature is always right there for anyone to see.
Those witch hazels, such a pretty colour and an interesting shape too.
Thank you Susan, I like them too. The fragrance is amazing.