Snow Equipment Owning/Operating Climate Change & Current National Freezing Conditions

[tcreeley]

I used to like night skiing also; it's a great cure for insomnia. :thumbsup: My neighbor is a bird person, every summer she gives tours on a local landowner's property. She told me a couple years ago that they're seeing some type of grackle which only shows up when the spruce budworm is around. Hopefully the moths won't be as damaging as they were during the last cycle.

That's interesting re the grackles. I had heard that evening grosbeaks were tied to spruce budworm, but not the grackles. I looked it up and a Canadian study linked them too. - Gets me to wondering because we are having spruce die here and there in our woods. I'll have to watch for it.

Forecast is calling for 4" of snow Early Wed am. Maybe this will head out to sea as well, or just be too warm!

 

[Jstpssng]

It may have been the grosbeaks. I'm not a bird person, they all fall into pretty broad categories to me. The budworm will hit the balsam fir first, and it takes a few years for them to die. If you do have questions you could give Allison Kanoti at the Maine Forest Service in Old Town a call. She's really helpful answering questions.

 

[Jstpssng]

I saw my first woodcock of the year. He didn't move much all day, and seemed to be wishing he hadn't come back so soon. Walking up my road is like walking on Jello, and will be that way or worse until the snow recedes from the ditches and we get a good rain to dry it out.
That last comment seems counterintuitive, yet there's nothing like a good warm rain to take the frost out so that the water can seep down through.

 

[tcreeley]

I saw my first woodcock of the year. He didn't move much all day, and seemed to be wishing he hadn't come back so soon. Walking up my road is like walking on Jello, and will be that way or worse until the snow recedes from the ditches and we get a good rain to dry it out.
That last comment seems counterintuitive, yet there's nothing like a good warm rain to take the frost out so that the water can seep down through.

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

 

[tcreeley]

No snow fell (as was predicted)- rained last night. Heavy rain today. One clap of thunder. Mud season has begun. Driving around yesterday on the tractor - the ruts were growing! Nice time to start looking for where the summer's load of gravel will go!
The frost in the ground is beginning to collapse with all of this rain. One has to watch your step as the ground suddenly drops out and down.

Moisture in the ground, freezes (4-5'), heaves, thaws with meltwater/rain unevenly, ground drops --- is the pattern I see. Sometimes you'll get a spring of clear water an inch or two wide running out of a bank - relieving the pressure of water that has no place to go due to the deep unthawed frost in the ground.

Still most of the ground is still covered in the white stuff. Yesterday we still had two small patches of snow on the roof.

 

[Jstpssng]

We're getting a nice little downpour accompanied by little thunder here right now, but nothing serious. My sap buckets finally started filling up again, maybe I'll be boiling tomorrow night. :thumbsup:

 

[k0ua]

We got another frost warning for tonite. Was 27 last nite. Went from 77 to 27, a fifty degree drop in a few hours. This is going to ruin the peach crop.

 

[Jstpssng]

That was a short spring that we just had. It never got above 30' today, and it's going to get quite cold tonight. At least I got a little bit of a sap run in the last couple of days.

 

[Jstpssng]

I took my tire chains off today, a sure harbinger of spring. It also ensures that we have at least one more snowstorm coming. :laughing:

Yesterday I was in Auburn where the spring peepers were singing. While here we everything is still frozen and we have 18" of snow on the ground.

 

[JerryK]

We had about 16-18" of snow yesterday... knee high in spots. Today we have high winds coming out of the east and have received about 2-3" of sleet like wind driven stuff [ still doing it ]. ' Posed to get 5-8" tomorrow.... YEA SPRING..... !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[tcreeley]

I think we are done with snow- or hoping we are!

Motorcycles are hitting the roads. In the 40's today - rain the past few days.

A couple of song sparrows singing and poking around. Good group of redwings and grackles. Not much else - cardinal sing regularly outside and around the house every morning.

I heard some more Canada geese flying over. Don't usually hear them in the spring, mostly the fall.

Still putting wood into the stove- trying not to heat us out of the house. Nights are still in the 20's most days.

 

[tcreeley]

We got another frost warning for tonite. Was 27 last nite. Went from 77 to 27, a fifty degree drop in a few hours. This is going to ruin the peach crop.

Weather can be weird. A few years back we had a small plum tree that spread itself into a grove. The fruit was small but sweet. We were planning to make jam but we had a more typical winter than what we used to get. And even though the plum grove had been in the ground for close to 10 years, It was in the high minus numbers long enough that it killed every single tree.

50 degree drop is some stress there!

 

[Jstpssng]

Weather can be weird. A few years back we had a small plum tree that spread itself into a grove. The fruit was small but sweet. We were planning to make jam but we had a more typical winter than what we used to get. And even though the plum grove had been in the ground for close to 10 years, It was in the high minus numbers long enough that it killed every single tree.

50 degree drop is some stress there!

That happens. Henry Drake, the farmer who I worked for decades ago told me that it sometimes helps to paint the tree trunks with white latex paint. That wouldn't help in the conditions that killed your plum tree, but in spring temperature swings the paint reflects sunlight and delays sap flow.

 

[tcreeley]

That happens. Henry Drake, the farmer who I worked for decades ago told me that it sometimes helps to paint the tree trunks with white latex paint. That wouldn't help in the conditions that killed your plum tree, but in spring temperature swings the paint reflects sunlight and delays sap flow.

What does the paint do? I've seen trees painted - but never known why?

 

[MossRoad]

What does the paint do? I've seen trees painted - but never known why?

Painting tree trunks protects against rodents, borers - Fruit Growers News

 

[Jstpssng]

What does the paint do? I've seen trees painted - but never known why?

Besides what MossRoad says it also reflects sunlight so that sap wont start running as early in spring because the tree trunks stay cooler. That helps avoid the freeze/thaw which kills the branches.

 

[/pine]

Should have seen this coming...Other groups of "scientists" besides the misguided AGW advocates have been corrupted into promoting a biased agenda rather than factual data...

Pasta Is Good For You, Say Scientists Funded By Big Pasta

 

[Tomtint]

As Al Gore would say... it's getting warmer..because it's getting colder.... sleet and 35* here this spring... Global Warming.... the biggest line of BS ever.

 

[Egon]

Small picture or big picture? The other side of the hill may be different!

 

[jfh28]

just looked out the window and....it's snowing!....this winter just will not give up........can not remember having snow this late in april around here.......Jack