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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Saturday, 31 July 2010
Hungry Goldfinch
Here’s the link to video of the Goldfinch in our plum tree.
It did bring its whole family along to join in the feast but I didn’t manage to get video of them. You may need to scroll to the bottom of the page of the website after following the link.
A little more rain
Not too sure about the weather in Ossett on Friday as we had most of the day out visiting Helmsley Walled Garden in North Yorkshire. It was cloudy with the sun only occasionally trying, with little success, to break through. No rain so we enjoyed our visit.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Back in Ossett we had a short heavy burst of rain around 18:30 and no sunshine recorded all day.
On Wednesday I visited the plot and during a spell of rain I took shelter in our shed and took some pictures of a young Goldfinch in our plum tree.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Friday, 30 July 2010
Where's the rain gone
Thursday was probably a typical July day. Warm, with a reasonable amount of sunshine and no rain today.
On the plot I dug up our crop of Red Duke of York potatoes. As you can see they looked ready to be lifted.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
As mentioned earlier this week details of our bee motel are now posted on our website.
Thursday, 29 July 2010
Twice the rainfall
Wednesday was a mostly cloudy day although we did manage some very brief sunny spells. There was more light rain in the morning and afternoon. This was enough to ensure that we’ve managed to achieve double the expected rainfall for July.
Our shallots are ready to be lifted and stored but I reckon I’ll need to find somewhere protected from the weather to dry them off properly in order for them to store well.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Wednesday, 28 July 2010
Not like forecast
Tuesday was better than forecast with the afternoon rain failing to materialise. It was a warm rather humid day. It was cloudy all morning but by mid afternoon the sun managed to break through the cloud.
Today’s job was making a bee home for solitary bees. Made out of a sawn down section of tree - details to follow on our web site soon.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Tuesday, 27 July 2010
Dull and drizzly
Monday was a dull day with some afternoon drizzle. It cleared away late afternoon to leave not too bad an evening. Strange that the warmest time of day was 18:40. We now need just another 0.4mm of rain to have exactly doubled the average rainfall for July.
On the plot we had a quick whizz round in the drizzle collecting fruit and vegetables as the forecast for Tuesday is not very promising. Our first French beans are now cropping well.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Monday, 26 July 2010
What's happened to summer?
Sunday got off to a good start but it didn’t last and by lunchtime clouds had taken over, the sun had done a disappearing act and the temperature fell away. Not particularly cold but summer seems to have deserted us for now.
Our Conference pear tree in the garden looks to have a decent crop of pears. This is the time of year when I don’t want any strong winds. The tree partially overhangs the greenhouse and it has been known for pears to be blown off the tree and go through the greenhouse glass. Fingers crossed for a month or so!
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Sunday, 25 July 2010
Cool overnight
It was the coolest overnight temperature of the month with the mercury falling to just 8.9°C. It was a bright sunny Saturday morning and very pleasant by lunchtime. It clouded over late afternoon with drizzle in the evening but not enough to cause a tipping of the rain gauge which occurs every 0.2mm of rainfall.
On the plot we made the most of the weather to plant out our last batch of French Beans and Courgettes which will hopefully have time to crop before any cold autumn weather arrives.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Saturday, 24 July 2010
A getting better day
Friday continued to get better the longer the day went on. By late afternoon early evening it was mild and sunny with very little breeze. No rain at all today either.
I noted on Beechgrove Garden last week that Duckweed is a baddie of the pond. Click here for factsheet to find out more pond plants to avoid. So armed with my net I scooped out some of the duckweed on our pond. It’s arrived by accident through visiting wildlife or on other pond plants bought at garden centres. I know to my cost it can soon cover the pond surface in a green mat unless some is removed on a regular basis. It’s a bit like cutting the lawn it needs doing at least once a week for the best results. I think that a little duckweed sets the pond off well so I don't remove it all. The removed duckweed is allowed to dry off before it’s composted.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Friday, 23 July 2010
Cool and cloudy
Thursday wasn’t a typical July day. It remained cloudy and cool all day with a drop more rain thrown in for good measure.
It’s amazing how well the plot has taken all the rain. This bed dug well after it was cleared of weeds and Sweet Williams on Monday.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Our marigolds are putting on a good show too showing little signs of damage from the wet weather.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Thursday, 22 July 2010
What’s happened to summer!
Wednesday was a day with heavy clouds interspersed with sunny spells and another short burst of heavy rain. A few weeks ago it seemed it would never rain again and now it just can’t stop. We’ve now had rain for 9 of the last 10 days amounting to double the typical July rainfall.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Before the rain came lettuces were just drying out and wilting on the plot. Now they’re just rotting in the rain.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Wednesday, 21 July 2010
Heavy rain
Tuesday produced a dull day with some heavy thundery rain. The video shows the rain around 18:30 on Tuesday - my apologies for including the TV news sound track.
It's hard to remember that the first 11 days of July were dry and that after a dry May and June we badly needed rain for the garden and plot. Since then 80mm of rain have made July the wettest month of 2010.
Those pesky birds have been causing problems again. Not satisfied with pinching any fruit or vegetables that take their fancy this time they left the remnants of my goodies in the rain gauge causing it to block. I noticed during the heavy rain my weather station wasn't recording much rain. At first I thought it had gone faulty but noticed it kept on recording rain when the rain had stopped. I decided to risk a soaking and get my step ladder out to inspect the rain gauge between the showers. It was just as well I did as the rain gauge was almost full of water. The blockage was bird droppings. I unblocked the gauge and the water raced through with the gauge’s tipping mechanism working frantically to record the stored up rainfall. This has given me a ridiculous rain rate which I don’t know how to amend at the moment. We haven’t had a rainfall rate of 768mm/hr the record remains at 144mm/hr. Help!
Tuesday, 20 July 2010
Summer returns
Monday turned out very pleasant. More sunshine and less breeze than of late and the temperature into the high twenties.
We made the most of the good weather on the plot as the forecast for the rest of the week is poor. More lettuce was planted out, spring onions and radish sown. To water or not to water was a tricky decision. The ground looked dry but lots of rain is forecast.
The lettuce got some water the spring onions and radish didn't. Time will tell if we made the right decision.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Monday, 19 July 2010
Disappointing for July
Sunday morning was a let down. Rain early morning cleared to leave a dull breezy morning. The afternoon was brighter with a few brief glimpses of sunshine. It was warm in the afternoon too despite the lack of sunshine.
The forecast varies quite a bit for next week, although both forecasts seem to be from the Met Office.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
On the plot our first batch of lettuce needs to be cleared as its either dried up or rather surprisingly finished up spoilt by the week's rain. Our next row is ready and has some sizeable lettuces of unknown variety as they’ve come from a packet of mixed seeds. I suspect these will soon go over too. Certainly to keep a good supply of lettuce some really needs to be sown every couple of weeks.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Sunday, 18 July 2010
A dry day
Saturday turned out to be our first dry day for 5 days. It wasn’t too bad a day, a bit breezy with sunny spells but fine for getting jobs done on the plot. The soil on the plot was just right for hoeing following the rather wet week. Just goes to show how dry the soil had become as we received the equivalent of July’s rainfall in the last 5 days yet the ground wasn’t waterlogged.
On the plot the first of our Kaleidoscope Mixed cauliflowers will soon be ready for cutting. Didn’t see any coloured heads forming though so hopefully this means the heads won’t all be ready at the same time.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Saturday, 17 July 2010
Windy
Friday was most notable for a very windy morning. It did quieten down during the afternoon to allow some short sunny spells with the odd light shower. Not a typical July day at all.
In the greenhouse Jimmy Nardello is on flower. This is one of our sweet peppers which don’t normally do well in the greenhouse but this year I’m making a special effort and also trying some different varieties. I suspect it’s a bit late coming into flower but I’m still hoping for a few peppers by autumn.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
The cold frame still has plenty of seedlings ready for the plot or trays of seeds yet to germinate. Most of the seeds still to germinate are over wintering brassicas whilst late french beans and lettuce wait to go down to the plot. After this week’s rain preparing the plot ready for them should be a whole lot easier and quicker.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Friday, 16 July 2010
Sunny spells and breezy
Thursday wasn’t too bad a day following yesterday’s storms. Ossett seemed particularly badly hit by the storms which left some local roads flooded. By Thursday morning things were generally drying up well. A visit to the plot confirmed just how heavy yesterday’s rain had been and the ground dug a couple of days ago had obviously had standing water on it. The surface will need breaking up before it gets chance to form a concrete like crust.
It was a day when rain threatened most of the time. Occasionally the sun shone and it was warm, but a strong breeze kept the clouds moving quickly and showers were always a threat. The sky was a mix from blue to very dark thundery clouds.
It was amazing where all that rain went as doing some digging the ground was moist on top but below a few inches still reasonably dry. This area where our crop of early broad beans had been cleared dug well.
Hard to believe it had 34mm of rain yesterday between 17:30 and 23:00 that’s around 75% of July’s average rainfall. Yesterday’s rain has ensured that here in Ossett we have already exceeded the expected rainfall total for July.
Wednesday - Torrential rain!
Well Wednesday really made up for the lack of rain with two thunderstorms giving torrential rain. The first storm broke around 17:30 and lasted about an hour, giving around 15mm of rain. At one point in the storm the rainfall was fast enough to give us all July's rainfall in just 20 minutes.
The second storm began around 21:30 and deposited another 15mm or so in the next hour. The rainfall for the day was 33.4mm the most since I began keeping records last October. I've noticed that none of the Met Office stations recorded anything like this amount of rainfall. I'm hoping the plot a few miles away got its fair share.
Tuesday - Just like buses!
We had some more rain Tuesday. Having waited for a wet day two come along together. I did a bit of digging on the plot yesterday to prepare a bed ready for winter brassicas. The rain from Monday did no more than wet the surface of the soil. It was bone dry underneath as you can see from photo below.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Wednesday - Torrential rain!
Well Wednesday really made up for the lack of rain with two thunderstorms giving torrential rain. The first storm broke around 17:30 and lasted about an hour, giving around 15mm of rain. At one point in the storm the rainfall was fast enough to give us all July's rainfall in just 20 minutes.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Tuesday - Just like buses!
We had some more rain Tuesday. Having waited for a wet day two come along together. I did a bit of digging on the plot yesterday to prepare a bed ready for winter brassicas. The rain from Monday did no more than wet the surface of the soil. It was bone dry underneath as you can see from photo below.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Looking round our plot I thought the dahlias had a lot of growing to do to become the large bushes they usually are by August. I think the dry weather has certainly reduced their growth this year. The photo below shows our dahlia bed in the middle of July this year and last.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Monday turned out to be the wettest day for a month. Not that we had much rain but at the moment any rain is good rain. It was just light rain or drizzle for several hours. The hot spell of the last week or so has come to an end with yesterdays high temperature in the mid teens rather than mid twenties.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
The charts below to compare our monthly temperatures this year with those of last year and the coldest and warmest temperatures for each month. The figures are mean temperatures for each day.
Table produced using data from the Met Office Hadley Centre. The data covers the period 1772 to 2009
Greenhouse v Outside Temperatures
I've also added the following spreadsheet tracking my greenhouse v outside temperatures for February and March
Greenhouse v Outside Temperatures
I've also added the following spreadsheet tracking my greenhouse v outside temperatures for February and March
Monday, 12 July 2010
Windy morning
Sunday morning was sunny but very windy. In the afternoon the wind eased to give a pleasant end to the day.
Our garden apples are coming on well. The pictures are of a variety which I think is Peasgoods Nonsuch and gave us plentiful supply of excellent cooking apples last autumn. The bottom photo is last years crop in early September 2009 and the top photos as they look today. Another good crop on the way?
Saturday - Muggy
Saturday was hot and muggy. It was possible to work up a sweat picking broad beans. There was plenty of cloud about which was probably a good thing keeping the temperature down a little on Friday.
Our cherries are almost ready - can we manage to keep the birds off for another few days?
Friday - Hottest of the month
Friday turned out to be the hottest day of the month so far. The records show some rainfall. I must admit when I saw 0.4mm recorded overnight I thought my weather station was faulty. A closer look outside did reveal traces of moisture and closer inspection of the equipment indicated that it had "rained" around 02:00. Then the same thing happened again in the afternoon. Returning from the plot the reading gave another 0.2mm. It hadn't rained on the plot 2 miles away and it was dry again at home. These traces of "rain" are of virtually no use in watering the plot or garden.
Parsley reading for potting on or planting out.
Thursday - Cloudy start - sunny afternoon
Thursday started off cloudy and overcast but by the afternoon the cloud was more broken giving some spells of sunshine. It remain warm with temperatures just above normal for the time of year.
Jostaberries ripening in the sunshine
Wednesday - Rain - I think!
Wednesday was a cloudy day although it cleared up late afternoon with some sunny periods. We had some light rain /drizzle for around 3 hours which started late morning. In total it amounted to 0.2mm and it never made the soil appear damp although any paved surfaces took on a rather damp appearance.
Mum looking for suitable meal worm for her youngster.
Tuesday - Warm
Tuesday was a rather cloudy day but felt warm and muggy in the afternoon. We had a few spots of rain late afternoon but not enough to even wet the ground. The good spell of weather continues to ripen our fruit. These gooseberries are ready for picking. Not sure about the variety but they do taste sweet.
Monday - Less sunshine
The weather deteriorated a little more on Monday with only short glimpses of sunshine and the temperature didn't manage 20°C. Can't complain too much though as we've had a good spell of fine summer weather.
Our garden apples are coming on well. The pictures are of a variety which I think is Peasgoods Nonsuch and gave us plentiful supply of excellent cooking apples last autumn. The bottom photo is last years crop in early September 2009 and the top photos as they look today. Another good crop on the way?
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Saturday - Muggy
Saturday was hot and muggy. It was possible to work up a sweat picking broad beans. There was plenty of cloud about which was probably a good thing keeping the temperature down a little on Friday.
Our cherries are almost ready - can we manage to keep the birds off for another few days?
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Friday turned out to be the hottest day of the month so far. The records show some rainfall. I must admit when I saw 0.4mm recorded overnight I thought my weather station was faulty. A closer look outside did reveal traces of moisture and closer inspection of the equipment indicated that it had "rained" around 02:00. Then the same thing happened again in the afternoon. Returning from the plot the reading gave another 0.2mm. It hadn't rained on the plot 2 miles away and it was dry again at home. These traces of "rain" are of virtually no use in watering the plot or garden.
Parsley reading for potting on or planting out.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Thursday started off cloudy and overcast but by the afternoon the cloud was more broken giving some spells of sunshine. It remain warm with temperatures just above normal for the time of year.
Jostaberries ripening in the sunshine
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Wednesday was a cloudy day although it cleared up late afternoon with some sunny periods. We had some light rain /drizzle for around 3 hours which started late morning. In total it amounted to 0.2mm and it never made the soil appear damp although any paved surfaces took on a rather damp appearance.
Mum looking for suitable meal worm for her youngster.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Tuesday was a rather cloudy day but felt warm and muggy in the afternoon. We had a few spots of rain late afternoon but not enough to even wet the ground. The good spell of weather continues to ripen our fruit. These gooseberries are ready for picking. Not sure about the variety but they do taste sweet.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
The weather deteriorated a little more on Monday with only short glimpses of sunshine and the temperature didn't manage 20°C. Can't complain too much though as we've had a good spell of fine summer weather.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
The charts below to compare our monthly temperatures this year with those of last year and the coldest and warmest temperatures for each month. The figures are mean temperatures for each day.
Table produced using data from the Met Office Hadley Centre. The data covers the period 1772 to 2009
Greenhouse v Outside Temperatures
I've also added the following spreadsheet tracking my greenhouse v outside temperatures for February and March
Greenhouse v Outside Temperatures
I've also added the following spreadsheet tracking my greenhouse v outside temperatures for February and March
Monday, 5 July 2010
Windy
Sunday was windy. The really fine weather of the last 2 weeks seems to be on the slide. It was still warm today but with much more cloud and windy not really what we need with the already dry conditions. No rain though despite the cloudy skies.
Fuchsia - Winston Churchill is coming into flower
Cooler
Saturday was just a little cooler and we had slightly less sunshine but a good day to be out and about on the plot.
My next batch of lettuce is looking good and just about ready to plant out to replace the dried up lettuces on the plot.
Warm spell goes on
Friday was another beautiful warm and sunny day with temperatures above average.
I didn't water too much on the plot expecting rain. That didn't happen and these lettuces decided enough was enough. Only good for the compost heap now.
Disappointing rain
I'm a little disappointed by the amount of overnight rain. I expected a bit more from the forecast. We had just 0.6mm which will not do much to water the plot or garden. July has started as June finished with the spell of fine warm weather continuing. Some predictions are that it's unlikely that the fine weather will continue much longer. Click here for details.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Cooler
Saturday was just a little cooler and we had slightly less sunshine but a good day to be out and about on the plot.
My next batch of lettuce is looking good and just about ready to plant out to replace the dried up lettuces on the plot.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Friday was another beautiful warm and sunny day with temperatures above average.
I didn't water too much on the plot expecting rain. That didn't happen and these lettuces decided enough was enough. Only good for the compost heap now.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
I'm a little disappointed by the amount of overnight rain. I expected a bit more from the forecast. We had just 0.6mm which will not do much to water the plot or garden. July has started as June finished with the spell of fine warm weather continuing. Some predictions are that it's unlikely that the fine weather will continue much longer. Click here for details.
Rhubarb on the plot is now showing signs of suffering from lack of water. It may well revive and produce some more stems once we get some proper rain.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
June ends well
The last day of June continued the spell of fine weather. Plenty of sunshine, a gentle breeze, gave another very pleasant day to round off June. The forecast for July is for more unsettled weather as weather systems approach from the Atlantic. The forecasts have been wrong in the past!
The last day of June continued the spell of fine weather. Plenty of sunshine, a gentle breeze, gave another very pleasant day to round off June. The forecast for July is for more unsettled weather as weather systems approach from the Atlantic. The forecasts have been wrong in the past!
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
This is another old rose which we have had in the garden for many years and with little attention still produces some nice flowers. I've no idea about the name though.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Welcome rain
The rain on Monday night and into Tuesday morning was very welcome but still left the plot very dry. There was less sunshine today and despite a breeze at times it turned out to be another lovely June day.
I'm amazed at just how many roses we have in the plot and garden. I didn't realise I was such a rose fan. This one in our garden is Golden Showers.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Remaining hot
It was another hot day. It clouded over late afternoon and had a bit of a thundery feel. The local evening weather forecast gave out some over night rain. Some very welcome gentle rain began just after 22:00 and lasted into Tuesday morning.
Alchemilla mollis or Lady's mantle with last night's rain glistening on its leaves.
Live weather details
I’m making a leap forward today with my weather reporting. I’ve been setting up my weather station software for a while now to try to get live (or almost live) weather data onto our web site. I’m trying this for the first time today. With luck the data will update about every 10 minutes throughout the day (or at least when I’m connected to the Internet and everything is working satisfactorily). I’m intending to do more work on the weather data web site as autumn and winter draw in and there is less work to do outside and on the plot.
By clicking here you should go directly to a live weather display of the current weather conditions in Ossett, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom. I'd really appreciate some feedback on whether or not you manage to access the data. Please use the comments area.
Monthly Temperature Comparisons
The charts below compare our monthly temperatures this year with those of last year and the coldest and warmest temperatures for each month. The figures are mean temperatures for each day.
It was another hot day. It clouded over late afternoon and had a bit of a thundery feel. The local evening weather forecast gave out some over night rain. Some very welcome gentle rain began just after 22:00 and lasted into Tuesday morning.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Live weather details
I’m making a leap forward today with my weather reporting. I’ve been setting up my weather station software for a while now to try to get live (or almost live) weather data onto our web site. I’m trying this for the first time today. With luck the data will update about every 10 minutes throughout the day (or at least when I’m connected to the Internet and everything is working satisfactorily). I’m intending to do more work on the weather data web site as autumn and winter draw in and there is less work to do outside and on the plot.
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| From 02 Weather 2010 |
Monthly Temperature Comparisons
The charts below compare our monthly temperatures this year with those of last year and the coldest and warmest temperatures for each month. The figures are mean temperatures for each day.
Table produced using data from the Met Office Hadley Centre. The data covers the period 1772 to 2009
Greenhouse v Outside Temperatures
I've also added the following spreadsheet tracking my greenhouse v outside temperatures for February and March
Greenhouse v Outside Temperatures
I've also added the following spreadsheet tracking my greenhouse v outside temperatures for February and March