A Gardener's Weather Diary: 2020

Tuesday, 29 December 2020

Storm Bella - Nothing Out of the Ordinary

Storm Bella arrived as forecast in the early hours of Saturday night and had passed through by dawn on Sunday morning. She came with some strong gusty winds and a decent amount of rain but nothing that we shouldn't expect in December. This December will be one of the least windy Decembers I've recorded.

Temperature & Rainfall Records December 2020

We're now into what looks like a coldish spell of weather with the temperatures hovering around the 0°C or 32°F mark by day and by night.

On Tuesday morning we had a light covering of wet slushy snow.

It looks like the last week of this December could be the coldest December week I’ve recorded in eleven years although the month certainly won’t finish up as cold as 2010, which was the start of our coldest winter in 100 years. It just happens that the last week of December 2010 wasn’t particularly cold but the rest of the month was bitterly cold with temperatures well below freezing through both day and night.

Despite a temperature of only 1.7°C (35.1°F) this morning’s snowfall is thawing and the forecast suggests showery rain for the rest of the morning rather than snow.

Sunday, 20 December 2020

Mild At The Moment - Will It Last?

Over the last week the weather has turned milder but it hasn’t resulted in any drier days. At the moment it looks like this December will follow a similar pattern to the last few Decembers and finish up with the month ending on a mild note.

Temperature & Rainfall Records 14-20 December 2020

However, that’s by no means certain judging from the weather models. They’re predicting a cold spell of weather starting around Christmas Day and lasting into the New Year. The models are also suggesting a sudden stratospheric warming event will occur, most likely early on in January, although that’s not guaranteed to give us a cold spell of weather.

One of our wood pigeons isn't content with munching its way through our fruit and vegetables and has taken a liking to sitting on the wind vane of my weather station.

It doesn't stop the wind speed measurement cups from spinning around but the wind direction remains fixed whilst it perches on the wind vane. It can be there for some considerable time.

Despite the wet weather through the week we did manage a visit to Nostell Priory with Ruby on Thursday afternoon in between bouts of rain. It meant some areas of the grounds were rather boggy and Ruby did a pretty decent job of finding them.

I don't think that there is meant to be a small lake in this field at Nostell Priory. Whilst Ruby didn't find any large puddles to run in she did seem to find plenty of muddy areas.

The first job when we got back home was to give Ruby a quick shower, something she’s not at all keen on.

Copyright: Original post from A Gardener's Weather Diary http://ossettweather.blogspot.co.uk/ author M Garrett

Tuesday, 15 December 2020

Dahlias Lifted At Last

At last, we had a decent day on Monday. Most of the week had followed a similar pattern either dull or wet and dull. It felt good to see a little bit of sunshine. It was the mildest day of the month so far as the temperature reached 10.8°C or 51.4°F.

Temperature and Rainfall Records 09-15 December 2020

Our wet days have been showery rather than really wet. The week’s rain added up to 10.6mm (0.42in) which is about what we might expect for a week in December. However, the incessantly wet, damp weather means allotment jobs are out of the question until we get some drier weather.

One job we needed to do at the plot was to lift our dahlia tubers. From past experience, we know that they don’t like to spend the winter in cold, wet soil. The tubers are now pretty large and took a bit of lifting out of the ground but the soil in this part of the allotment wasn’t too soggy.

The roots had as much excess soil removed as was possible without damaging the tubers. The tops were cut off and removed to the compost heap. The tubers were then moved into the plot greenhouse and placed upside down to allow any moisture to drain out of the cut back stems.

For the coldest spells of winter, usually January and February, the tubers will need some extra protection against the cold. My plan is to bring the tubers home and store them in the garage where unless we get some extremely cold weather they should avoid being frosted.

Wednesday, 9 December 2020

A Cold and Wet Start to December

It seemed to me that November was a wet month although the rainfall figures for the month didn’t back that up. However, December has started off cold and wet. We’ve already had 21.8mm (0.86in) of rainfall in the first week which is getting on for as much as we had in the whole of November.

At least it fell as rain rather than snow.

On Sunday morning it was cold and wet in the garden after some overnight rain but somehow one of our roses is still in bloom.

The other blooms on the same stem haven’t faired as well. There’s another bud to open but I can’t see it opening this late into the year.

The weather forecast for the next few days is for more cold weather. Strangely, over the last few years, December has tended to warm up as the month progresses which is not what I’d expect.

December Temperature Records 2010-2020

Friday, 4 December 2020

Just An Average November

Meteorological winter has begun and it's started on a rather chilly note. I'm writing this post as we get the first few snowflakes of winter. They're not settling even though the outside temperature at 10:00 on Friday morning is only 1.2°C or 34.2°F.

Looking back on November shows that it was a pretty average November without any major weather events for us.

The temperature finished up a little bit above average and rather surprisingly it turned out to be slightly drier than normal. If anything it seemed like a wetter November than it actually was which was probably down to it raining on 22 days of the month. We didn't have any great amount of rain but enough to make it damp and miserable for many days in the month.

Autumn 2020 finished up fairly average too with the temperature very slightly below expected and rainfall below average as well.

This autumn we have made much more progress at the allotment getting beds cleared and tidied up for winter. Last autumn produced more than double this autumn's rainfall and it brought allotment activities to an abrupt end.

This year we've much more progress although I think most of the plot is now too wet to do much more work on.

We still have to lift our dahlias which hung on producing a few flowers well into November. We'll have to make an effort to lift them the next time we visit the plot for some vegetables as leaving them in the cold wet soggy ground will probably result in us losing the tubers over winter.

Saturday, 28 November 2020

Calm and Frosty

The very early hours of Saturday morning produced our coldest autumn temperature of the year as the thermometer fell to -2.1°C or 28.2°F. Late on Friday night, the temperature had fallen to below zero as the reading on my weather station shows.

The temperature continued to fall but through the night milder conditions arrived and by morning the temperature was back above zero but not by much.

Temperature, Rainfall and Wind Speed Records 22-28 November 2020

I've added the purple wind speed record to the chart above as the high wind speed for Friday was a remarkable 1.0mph. It's the only time in my 11 years of record keeping that a day in November has had such a low wind speed. November is rather better known for its stormy and windy weather. Other months of the year have recorded such low wind speed but it is an unusual occurrence.

We'd taken Ruby for a walk in Rothwell Park on Friday afternoon and it was a lovely late autumn afternoon.

After a dull morning, the skies cleared and the sun came out. Without any wind, it felt very pleasant. It was that clear sky that produced such a low overnight temperature. I'm guessing that the dahlias at the plot will now definitely be ready for lifting. On the other hand, our parsnips should now be ready to lift after a cold frosty night should, according to gardening folklore, have sweetened them.

Saturday, 21 November 2020

A Cold Snap

Early on Friday morning was our lowest autumn temperature this year as the thermometer fell to 0.1°C (32.2°F) just short of giving us our first air frost.

Temperature & Rainfall Records 15-21 November 2020

However, like our hot spells in summer, it was over very quickly only lasting for around a day before we returned to rather mild November temperatures. We've had some rain most days in the form of showers keeping the ground damp even though no great amount of rain has fallen.

Even when the sky has cleared there's still been some threat of rain around.

Our magnolia tree has now lost most of its leaves. There are just a few stragglers left to fall. The path at the side of the house is now covered in leaves.

I'll have to gather up the leaves and add them to the compost heap. Left on the path they make it very slippery. Added to the compost heap they will make good material for mulching around shrubs in the garden. Whilst the magnolia has lost all its leaves we have one rose bush in the front garden refusing to accept the onset of winter.

There are still more buds left to follow on. Will they make it before some real winter weather arrives?

Monday, 16 November 2020

A Mild Start to November

The first half of the month has turned out to be reasonably mild considering it's November. Unlike the last couple of months, we've had a reasonable number of days with temperatures above average for the time of year.

Temperature Records for November 2020

The chart above shows that for the last week the daytime temperatures have been above the red line indicating the 10 year average high temperatures for November. Of course, milder temperatures don't tell the whole story. We've also had lots of damp, wet weather. It hasn't involved any great amount of rain but just enough to stop even the top of the ground from drying out.

Thursday afternoon was one of our better spells of weather and we made the most of it with a walk around Nostel Priory grounds with Ruby.

Some trees are now in full winter mode having lost all their leaves, whilst others still have enough leaves left to show off the last of their autumn colours.

Like us, Ruby likes to relax when she's not out walking.

We now seem to be back to dull and dreary weather for the next few days. I've seen talk of a cold spell towards the end of the month. I hope it brings some bright and sunny weather with it.

Tuesday, 10 November 2020

It’s Gone – Mid Post

This morning (Tuesday) I snapped the view from the bedroom window. The mist and fog that had descended late last week were still here. We'd had a few drops of rain on Monday night but the mist and fog stubbornly remained.

Then as if by magic by an hour later the mist had disappeared and the sky was visible for the first time in days.

It's also fairly mild at the moment for early November. The only problem is that everything is sopping wet. If it stays fine we might spend the afternoon at the allotment doing a bit more tidying up.

We visited the plot on Sunday afternoon to do a little bit of harvesting. It was a bit bleak so we didn't stop any longer than necessary to harvest a few vegetables.

Sunday, 8 November 2020

Murky Days - When Are They Bletted

After a lovely day on Wednesday, the weather turned murky with mist and fog in the morning only slowly clearing, leaving the afternoon dull and cloudy.

On Saturday there was very little difference between our daytime high temperature of 7.1°C (44.8°F) and night time low of 5.2°C or 41.4°F.

Temperature & Rainfall Records 02-08 November 2020

I always think of our quinces as being the last fruit of the season. This year they were picked at the beginning of October.

They are a little bit different from all our other fruit in that they cannot be eaten raw. The fruits only soften on cooking and are delicious added to apples or eaten on their own. However, we do have another fruit, growing on a tree in the garden, which is still to be picked.

These are medlars and the fruits are still very firm. The fruits have to blet before they can be eaten. I'm not sure whether the fruits are best left on the tree for this to happen or whether they should be removed and stored inside until they soften. I've read that once softened the fruit tastes a little bit citrusy but to be honest, we've never got that far. I find it very difficult to tell difference between bletting and rotting. Maybe I'll give them another week or so on the tree before deciding what to do.

Thursday, 5 November 2020

More Winter Days Like This Please

Wednesday turned out to be a very nice autumn day. After the dull and dreary weather of October, Wednesday showed us how nice autumn can be. It wasn’t a particularly warm day with the temperature reaching 11.4°C (52.5°F) about average for early November. We had a pretty chilly start to the day although we avoided having a frost. There was plenty of sunshine on offer and very little breeze making it feel quite pleasant outside in the afternoon sunshine.

In the morning we’d taken Ruby for a walk in Rothwell Park. There were plenty of other people making the most of a lovely sunny morning. Ruby still isn’t too confident about meeting other dogs out for a walk.

Sometimes if Ruby’s feeling particularly brave some nose touching might take place but more often than not there’s a little bit of a standoff. She’s gradually getting better though so hopefully if we can keep taking her for walks and meeting other dogs she’ll become more confident.

Despite not being too happy about meeting other dogs, Ruby really seems to enjoy going out for a walk. It keeps us active too even if the weather’s not all that good.

Tuesday, 3 November 2020

A Wet, Windy But Mild Start to November

It’s been a rather strange start to November. The first day of the month was wet and windy but very mild.

Temperature and Rainfall Records 27 October – 02 November 2020

As you can see from the temperature trace above the mildest part of the day was around midnight on Sunday, not really the sort of time when I expect the highest temperature. However, as there was a gale force wind blowing at the same time as well as intermittent showers the temperature was a little bit irrelevant. For the records, the temperature reached 17.4°C (63.3°F) just short of the highest November temperature I’ve recorded which was 17.9°C (64.2°F) on the 10 November 2015 at 13:55.

We did manage to visit the allotment on Sunday afternoon between the showers. It was a case of harvesting a few fresh vegetables as quickly as possible before any more rain arrived.

Looking in one direction the weather looked fine but unfortunately, this was the weather we had just had, and looking in the opposite direction the weather approaching didn’t look all that promising.

I picked a cauliflower and a cabbage whilst Sue picked over the last of the peas and French beans. I picked the remaining tomatoes from the plot greenhouse and Sue picked a few cut flowers. By this time it was just beginning to rain again.

As darkness fell the wind picked up to gale force and we had some more rain but the temperature continued to rise.

Friday, 30 October 2020

Cool and Wet October

It’s taken a while to get there but this October has now become the second wettest I’ve recorded in the last eleven years. The total has now reached 74.2mm (2.9in) still some way short of last year’s 106.0mm (4.2in) which is easily the wettest October I’ve recorded.

Temperature & Rainfall Records 23-29 October 2020

Temperature-wise too this October is following a similar pattern to last year in that we are having another cool October. The average temperature for the month currently stands at 9.9°C or 49.8°F dropping this year into the bottom three of the last eleven years.

Most of this month’s rainfall has come in the form of showers rather than prolonged spells of heavy rain. The rainfall over the last week has probably been enough to make the ground at the allotment too wet to do any more winter digging.

We managed to clear this bed of its summer crops of runner beans and courgettes this week. We managed to dig over the ground but it was right on the limit of being too wet.

However, we’ve made much better progress than last year when virtually all our tidying up and digging over beds was left until the spring because of that very wet October.

The plot is now taking on a very autumnal look. The weather forecast is for a very wet and windy weekend.

Monday, 26 October 2020

We Missed The Showers

Last week was a showery one with a couple of cold nights thrown in.

Temperature and Rainfall Records 20-26 October 2020

We didn’t have any great amount of rain on any particular day but the showers tended to be spread out through the day. We fancied visiting Fountains Abbey to see it lit up by floodlights. Of course in these Covid times, that means booking in advance so it’s not a case of being able to wait for a good day and just go. At one point the weather forecast suggested that Monday would be the best day of the week and so we booked a visit. By the time it got to Monday the forecast for the day wasn’t as promising as when we booked. We headed off in any case hoping we’d miss any showers that were forecast. Our arrival time was 15:00 giving us plenty of time to wander around the lakes at Studley Royal before it got dark.

As dusk fell the floodlighting of the Abbey began to take effect. Extra evening catering facilities had been arranged and we enjoyed a teatime coffee and cake as we waited for darkness to fall.

Both the inside and outside of the Abbey was lit by floodlights.

As we made our way back to the car park it was beginning to rain so we’d been rather lucky with the timing of our visit.

We did manage a couple of trips to the allotment. Fortunately, we don’t have to book them in advance. We managed some more tidying up, removing the remains of our runner beans and outdoor tomato plants to the compost heap.