Lately I’ve been preoccupied much with the prospect of drought. So far, this is the second driest May on record. April was also very dry. Normally, this is a region of fairly generous rainfall, but we haven’t had a good rain in months. Precipitation for this year so far is less than half what we …
They were waiting, under the snow. In a flower bed tucked into the right angle where the brick wall of the attached garage meets the enclosed back porch. A favored spot in terms of sun, where the snow melts early.
Over the last 2 days the Chicago area has gotten about 18″ of snow. And that was on top of a bunch of other snow, so that we’ve got a total of 44″ for the season, a 40-year record.
It’s foolish to take the weather personally, but I can’t help it. It’s especially foolish given what is going on elsewhere in the country. Even so, I check the weather app on my phone several times a day. We haven’t had a good rain for over a month. A rainless 10-day forecast provokes exasperated sighs. …
A dramatic high point of the traditional Passover Seder is the recitation of the 10 plagues visited upon Egypt. On this last night of Passover, it occurs to me that there were at least 3 plagues visited upon our garden this week. And while they all were a lot milder than the ones cited in …
This might seem a little late for a post on plants lost to our last winter (an extraordinarily severe one). But sometimes you need more time to be really sure of your losses.
You’ve heard of the slow food movement, right? We seem to be living through a slow spring movement. Don’t be anxious for all those spring flowers, the weather is telling us. Be in the moment – savor the season day by day. Most years, the slow spring movement lasts only as long as there isn’t …
Thanks to everyone who expressed concern for our well-being during Chicago’s recent spell of severe weather. We are fine. In fact, Judy had to spend this past week in Los Angeles for her job. She’ll be getting home late tonight.
Was it really barely a week ago that I wrote a post entitled “Let Winter Be Winter”? Yes, it was – only a few days ago I was complaining about our eerily mild temperatures. And the weather gods could not resist the opportunity to make me the straight man in a little joke. The weather …
There’s a compact Korean Spice Viburnum (Viburnum carlesii) just outside our front door. I give it a close inspection, if I’m not in a hurry, almost every time I enter or exit the house.
