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Two fullsized ice chests stacked on one another in 20" of snow.
-February 9, 2011 |
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Wet January and February
-March 1, 2011 |
After a dry and mild November and December, we've had a wet and wild January and February, including a near record 20" snowfall and wide temperature swings from -18 degrees up into the low 70's.
A day after the snowfall, we experienced -18 degree temperatures. Northwest Arkansas is in zone 7, but we got temperatures down into zone 5! Fortunately, the 20" of snow was on the ground and provided some insulation. We'll wait and see what damage was done to our perennials by the extreme cold snap.
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| Scotch kale growing in a cold frame |
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| Swiss chard growing in a cold frame |
Despite the extreme low temperatures, the Scotch kale and Swiss chard are flourishing in the straw bale cold frame. I am very impressed.
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| Daughter strawberry plants in need of transplanting |
The uncovered strawberry plants suffered some freeze damage, but again the heavy snow cover insulated them through the worst of it. They are putting on new growth and are in need of transplanting into the blocks.
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| Evergreen bunching onions putting on new growth |
With the recent warm weather, the green onions have exploded. Onions being a biennial plant, they should put on seed in this second year. We will wait and see how the seed production affects edibility.
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| Chickens newly feathered and laying eggs again |
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| Eggs! |
During the heavy snow, the chickens mostly stayed in their house, because they couldn't get around in it. They didn't seem to be affected by the cold much as long as they had a draft free house to huddle in. Since coming out of their molt, the hen's egg production continues to fluctuate between 0-6 eggs per day with an average of around 3 eggs a day. Hopefully as the days grow longer, they will pick back up to 5-6 eggs a day.
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| Daffodils emerging |
One of the traditional signs of early spring, the daffodils are starting to come up. With almost two full months left before our average last frost date in late April, this is concerning. The early warm spell will cause a lot of early flowering crops (peaches, strawberries, etc.) to get going early and their blooms are likely be nipped by frost. Could make for some light early fruit harvests this year.
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