Saturday, November 14, 2009

Are We In For A Bad Winter? Look At The Plants!

Our farming ancestors became experts at predicting whether a bad winter was on its way. However, they could not even imagine the sophisticated means of weather forecasting that we have today. Instead, they used such things as plants, animals and insects to forecast the winter.

These methods were surprisingly accurate, and still are today. This article will tell you how the farmers used plants to predict how bad the approaching winter would be.

A bad winter is on its way if….

Trees still have lots of green leaves late into the fall.

The trees have thicker bark than normal.

The tree bark on the north side of the tree is heavier than the other bark.

There is a heavy crop of dogwood and holly berries.

There is a heavy crop of pinecones and acorns.

The sweet potatoes have a tougher skin than normal.

There are more layers on the onions.

Apples mature earlier than normal.

The carrots grow deeper than normal.

The blackberry crop is especially good.

The grapes mature earlier than normal.

Cockleburs appear earlier than normal.

Pine cones open up early.

Tree leaves shed before they turn color.

Tree moss is heavier than normal.

The grass is darker than normal during summer.

This is a good time to test this method of predicting the weather. You might just be surprised to find that the plants are more correct than your local weatherperson in forecasting.








2 comments:

  1. Have you noticed animals with thicker fur than usual? Thicker than the usual winter coat, that is. That's supposed to be another sign.

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  2. Yes, and I think we are in for a rough winter, Daisy. I sure hope not - heating costs are high enough as it is....In Oklahoma we have terrible ice storms that tear down power poles, and then our electric bills go up, too!
    Thanks for your comment!
    Debbie - All Trails Lead Home.

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