A Gardener's Weather Diary: More slow thaw

Monday 28 December 2009

More slow thaw

Note for Sunday 27th
Temperatures stayed above zero again today melting most of the remaining snow. The forecast is for colder nights to return.

From 2009 December weather

Note for Saturday 26th
Slow thaw continues
Temperatures remained above 0°C today and the slow thaw which started yesterday continued. I am assuming that the rainfall recorded over the last few days is due to melting snow and ice which covered my rain gauge.

Note for Friday 25th
A very slow thaw begins
Temperatures still below average as the cold spell continues. Despite this, there was a slow thaw through the day.
Note for Thursday 24th
Milder but more snow
A milder day but there was some more overnight snow leaving a scene that I just couldn’t resist photographing.

From 2009 December weather

Note for Wednesday 23rd
More snow
After another cold day we had some more snow which started at 21:00 and lasted for a couple of hours. The weather conditions were calm and the snowfall left a picturesque scene.

From 2009 December weather

Almost un-noticed amidst the freezing weather and chaotic travel news since last weekend the winter solstice has passed. Daylight is now getting longer although it may be a few weeks before we notice any difference.

Note for Tuesday 22nd
Cold spell continues
The temperature has hardly risen above freezing over the last few days and the dusting of snow has turned to a crunchy layer of snow or ice. As we found on a trip to the plot things are no different there.

Note for Monday 21st
Freeze continues
Continuing bitterly cold all day. The forecast is for this to continue until Boxing Day. The temperature had fallen to -4.8°C by midnight which was the lowest this winter for us. By dawn on Tuesday the temperature had fallen further, down to -6.5°C.
Outdoor plants probably wish that they had a nice warm blanket of snow to protect them from the severe frosts. But with only a dusting of snow its not the case.