Well, acorns… But anyhoo…
According to Farmer’s Almanac, we’re in for it this winter…
According to Farmer’s Almanac, we’re in for it this winter…
Another one is to look at the nuts that hit the ground, and what the animal’s coats look like…
Here’s a pic of the ground last weekend.
And here’s the SIZE of the acorns. They are so big the squirrels are having to gnaw them down to ‘size’ so they can fit them in their mouths… And that’s a quarter for reference.
As far the the squirrels, none of them would hold still, but BUSHY and fat is the best word I can use to describe them…
Yep, better break out the WINTER clothes, and start growing the winter coat (beard) early!
Yote fur out here belies you graphic , I haven’t seen them this bushy in a long time, and that dont say that mother nature is expecting mild .
So, it says “drier & chilly” for the Pacific NW. And we’ve had 1/4 of our normal snowfall so far, with temps running 10 to 20 degrees below normal.
Hmmm…
Noticed the acorns in particular this year.
As I look at the next 10 days of mild temps (50s) with no rain/snow/sleet – no nothin – honestly for us it’s not a good thing. Checking the computer rain guage we’ve had 32″ of rain for the first 11 months of the year. Bad, bad, bad, . . . . . Much as I hate kick-ass winters, we really need one our here in the heart land. And yet, nothing forcast for the first week of December.
Farmer friends are not particularly happy . . . .
The Pineapple Express is supposed to be coming through, but so far it’s been a disappointment – although i don’t mind warm rain and coming from a tropical origination find the snow and cold way over-empahsized!
gimme snow. kill these dang mosquitoes!
Hope we have a hard winter in Colorado. First, we need the water. Second, thirty days of continuous below freezing temps kills off pine bark beetles. Of course, more snow means more skiers, but you can’t have it all.
FD- Point…
Rev- Their predictions may not be ‘perfect’ but they are usually pretty damn good…
PH- Yep!
eia- Understood
NC- Yeah, ‘bit’ of a problem with it this year…
Laura- Not enough though… dammit…
WSF- Can’t have it both ways 😛
Major indicator:
Algore sez it’s gonna get warmer.
Regardless of the acorns and chubbiness/bushiness of squirrels, the fact that it is winter is a good bet it will be cold/colder/coldest sooner or later. I’ll bet money on it.
Ed- Point!
CP- Smartass 🙂
We have had a bumper crop of acorns this year, inches deep. The squirrels are looking fat and I swear I saw a hawk drooling. Well… maybe not that last one.
Last year was a lean year for acorns. Leanest I recall.
In Florida, I wouldn’t mind chilly and wet for a change.
I have acorns out the ying-yang. Like Graybeard chilly and cold is fine by me. We have enough heat here in Florida. Squirrel stew comes to mind…
Looks like GOOD TIMES for the squirrels — !!
BZ
Fat squirrels and rabbits could be a good thing this winter…
GB/Stephen- Y’all enjoy Florida! 🙂
BZ- Yep, AND their predators!
Rick- Good point!
I’ve thinned the squirrels out fairly well in my neighborhood (CO) and haven’t seen many this winter. Last summer’s drought killed off most of the fruit in the back yard and nearly killed the back yard itself, so 8-10 ft of snow wouldn’t be bad.
O.K. maybe not quite that much.