In spite of the polar vortex, looking ahead to spring
My garden journal features sporadic entries over the decades, usually after a spectacular success (tastiest cantaloupe ever!) or disasters, woodchucks again- aaaargh.
Weather entries enjoy top billing, such as the fourth week of February 2001: It never seems to fail — rain or sleet ruin any existing snow the weekend that school vacation begins. Rain, ice and wind transformed the little remaining snow into cement.
It remains like this until I read ahead to the first week in March: Town Meeting Day, fourth greatest snowfall ever in Champlain Valley, dumping 30+ inches on us. Town Meeting postponed. Wind whips up drifts. No school through Wednesday.
In 1998, the first week in March, I order $65 of garden seeds from Johnny’s, an extravagance, but cheaper than therapy. Must have been a rough winter.
In 2016, first crocus blossoms on March 8.
Which brings us to this winter. Most of the United States has been under the spell of the polar vortex, making parts of the country, per The New York Times, the most unusually cold place on the planet so far this year. The frigid airmass that usually winters over Canada, Greenland and the Artic, migrated south, leaving those places warmer than usual and us shivering. More than 30 states have had average temperatures at least five degrees colder than average.
Given that I love to ski or snowshoe out my backdoor, I am quite content but I am looking ahead to spring.
The Winooski Natural Resources Conservation District’s annual plant sale inspires us to fill empty spots in the garden or yard with native plants at good prices. Plants are bare root and must be planted promptly; for example, plan and dig before driving to Williston to pick up your bounty. Offerings range from peach to hazelnut trees, spruce and fir to elms, high bush blueberries and the increasingly rare butternut tree, and pussy willows and red osier dogwood. Ordering deadline is May 3 but popular items sell out quickly. Pick-up date is Saturday, May 10, in Williston from 9 a.m. to noon. I suggest aiming for 9 a.m. or earlier. Gardeners are eager folk. Info.
If you are itching to tidy up your land, think again about leaving snags for wildlife. Snags are generally standing dead trees, but we have a cavity-rich sugar maple that lives on against all odds. When we moved to our house 40 years ago, some suggested cutting it down. The tree was full of holes but still leafing out on its remaining branches. Forty years later, the maple is little changed other than its resident cavity dwellers.
From Mary Holland’s blog, Naturally Curious, it is estimated that about a fourth of northeastern forest wildlife species need cavity trees. Mammals raise their young in cavities as well as 85 species of birds in North America. Even invertebrates such as snakes, frogs and salamanders find food and shelter and incubate eggs in tree cavities.
Whoooo of us who walks Mt. Philo in the spring has not seen the family of owls nesting in a tree cavity? Naturally Curious is published several times each month. It’s brief, pithy and fun for nature lovers.
Green Mountain Club volunteers will lead two wintry outings on the weekend of March 8-9. On Saturday, March 8, a moderate, pet-free, 6-mile snowshoe or hike, with 800 feet of elevation gain, to expansive views of Moosalamoo. The outing departs from Branbury State Park in Salisbury, on the shores of Lake Dunmore. On Sunday, March 9, snowshoe and microspike on a difficult hike in the Worcester Range, including Mount Hunger and White Rock, 6.5 miles and 2,100 feet of elevation gain. Go to greenmountainclub.org, and then to Events for details and registration. The website hosts a wealth of information, events, classes, courses and resources for outdoor recreation year-round.
While not outdoors, the 2025 Vermont Flower Show, March 7-9, at the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction, cures the winter blues. Tickets are available at the door or online at both Claussen’s and Gardener’s Supply. Smell the roses and get an early dose of spring.