A little more snow

Friday morning saw some more light snow which continued to fall into the afternoon before turning to rain. Fortunately the snow didn't amount to a great deal just a covering and it was wet and slushy by mid afternoon.

As it was a bit unpleasant outside spent some time trying to video birds on our feeders. Just feeling a need to compete with Mrs GL and her new camera really. I managed to get our cheeky robin on the seed feeder.



Disappointing

Thursday was a let down as it started off rather sunny but quickly clouded over to give another very dull day. Just after lunch it was almost dark and the view from our web cam was much like this for most of the afternoon. Despite the heavy clouds we had virtually no rain just a little drizzle during the afternoon and early evening with temperatures just a little below average.

Unusual - some rain!

Wednesday was wet with light rain or drizzle for most of the day. As December turned out to be a relatively dry month I'm sure the Water Authorities will be glad of some rain. The garden seems wet enough without any rain. I suppose the cold days with no sunshine or wind do not really dry the ground much. Wonder what the conditions will be like in March when it's time to start planting.

Under our bird bath this fern looks well, surrounded by last years magnolia leaves and there's just some signs of bulbs pushing through the soil.

From 2011 Weather Pictures 1

Other signs of life

Tuesday was a better day with a bit more sunshine. It was unusual as it became warmer as we headed towards midnight.

After the pond was almost completely frozen over last month there are good signs that the fish have survived now that the ice and pond sculpture have melted and temperatures have returned to more normal levels.

Paul Hudson has added more details to his blog regarding the freezing temperatures in December and it's turned out to be the second coldest in the last 351 years. What seems even more amazing is that globally 2010 was the second warmest year on record beaten only by 1998! I think that's based on records going back to the late 1970's but don't hold me to that.

Click on the image of the article to read Paul's blog.

Just a little brightness

Monday showed a little sign of improvement over the drabness of the last few days. There was just a hint of sunshine at times but it remained just a hint. The signs are there though that spring is on its way as more bulbs begin to push through the soil. Another couple of months and I’ll think about sowing some seeds.

From 2011 Weather Pictures 1

Cooler again

The general pattern of dull weather continued but the milder temperatures fell away during the day. The garden seems to have a drab look to match the weather. One lone flower attempted to brighten up another dull day.

From 2011 Weather Pictures 1

Mild start

The New Year’s weather got of to a drab start following the same pattern of the last few days, dull, damp a little drizzle with temperatures around average for early January.

At least the mild weather of the last few days has allowed the snow and ice to clear to give us a fresh start for the year and the usually colder months of January and February.

Our pond ice sculpture has now all but disappeared. Will it return in the next couple of months?

From 2011 Weather Pictures 1

Happy New Year

Another damp miserable but rather mild day brought 2010 to a close. Even if the weather was mild the demand on the power stations of Ferrybridge, Drax and Eggborough looked to be high from this photo taken during the afternoon.

Figures are now showing that December was the second coldest December based on the Central England Temperature Record which dates back to 1772. Provisionally the table of coldest December’s looks like this.

My weather station average for December is 0.3 a placing of equal 7th in the table but as we live in an urban area I would anticipate a slightly higher temperature.

This article in the Daily Telegraph summarizes the month well. Here’s hoping that January and February are more average, temperature wise, and don’t follow December into the record books.

{Click on the image to read the full article}