I am at my desk, looking out over the lawn to the salt pond. It’s mid-December, and the grass is still green. The sage and thyme in my vegetable garden are very much alive, because until a couple of days ago, it was warm – in the 60sF. The birds and squirrels are coming to the feeders, but not with the purpose they have when it’s wintry and cold.
There are good things and bad things about this warm early winter:
First the good:
We’re saving on heating oil, we don’t have to pay the guy to plow our driveway, I can dash out with the dog and not have to worry about pulling on my snow boots, and many of the plants in the garden, like the aforementioned herbs, are still alive and providing their fresh-tasting goodness to my cooking. Oh yes, and there are no puddles of melting snow on the kitchen floor.
sage and thyme, still just fine
And now the bad:
It’s going to be Christmas soon, and it should be white, not brown, green and gray. We are skiers, and we’re wondering whether this might be one of “those” winters – the tragic, snowless kind. My dog has no snow to stick her nose into and snuffle up whatever scent is lurking down there. There’s is no blanket of whiteness to insulate and protect the gardens from that desiccating wind.
It just doesn’t feel right.
Digging RI 
Just not right here on the north end of town – forsythia in bloom. Good: 40’s temps today, ideal for clearing my wood debris pile, raking. Bad: This unsettling feeling that this unusual weather change is not in synch with our plant cycle. Roses on RT 138! weird
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I saw forsythia blooming today, too! Not liking this. Not one little bit.
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I think we’ll all have to adjust to the weather not feeling right. The single degree or so of global warming we’ve had so far is starting to throw things off, and we’re forecast to have 4 to 10 degrees (F) of warming over the next several decades.
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And as things continue to heat up, those in power refuse to do anything about it. I am so glad I won’t be alive in 50 years to se what has become of our once beautiful planet. It makes me very angry – and very sad.
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And we, near Cape Town in the Southern hemisphere, feel as if we have slipped into autumn. It’s chilly. Global weirding starts to bite.
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But no snow, right?
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The weather is definitely strange this year. We had a little bit of snow awhile back that quickly melted. Since then, nothing. It’s not even that cold yet. We’ve even had a few days that are warmer than you’d expect for this time of year. I’m actually concerned that my bulbs will start growing!
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Aren’t you conditioned to expect a white Christmas? I am. Last year we did have snow for the holidays, but that is usually not the case in southern RI – at least not in 2011….
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It’s the same here in the South. Quite a few perennials didn’t die back. I’ve already seen some Camellias in full bloom, though mine are still buds. The forecast is for the 70’s most of the week. It will probably be a disappointing Spring. Last year, winter was colder than usual and it gave us a gorgeous Spring. We’ve had a few nights dip into the 30’s, but it’s really like a long drawn out early autumn.
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I’m with you on autumn. It’s probably my favorite season. Camellias. Wow!
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