Snow Days

The past year has been a strange one for weather. Last summer was the hottest on record in the northeast U.S., and this January is going to be the snowiest month on record for some parts of Connecticut. Well, it's been a good test of the house I moved to last June, whose heating, cooling, snow removal and general structural characteristics seem to be adequate under extreme conditions.


I enjoy a certain amount of snow, but this winter is getting kind of traumatic. I'm wondering where I'm going to shovel it to, if we get much more. Well, the roof is cleared off in anticipation of tomorrow's storm, and late-winter flowering bulbs like Freesia are doing their thing in the UConn greenhouse, so spring isn't too far off. We're gaining more than two minutes of daylight every day in my area, and the sun is noticeably stronger than it was a few weeks ago. By mid-March, any sort of serious cold or snow is very unlikely here. Six weeks to go!

To get the Connecticut Cactus and Succulent Society in the mood for spring, the February meeting (Sunday the 6th) will feature a program by Devan Parker about starting seeds under artificial lights. On February 19th, I'll be giving a talk to the Cactus and Succulent Society of Massachusetts about Conophytum, everyone's favorite genus of winter-growing succulent plants. And at the end of the month, Nutmeggers can look forward to the Connecticut Flower and Garden Show, where I'm giving a demonstration about succulents for the windowsill, and a slide show about Pelargonium (geranium relatives). The time until spring will fly by, I'm sure.