Spring Loaded – How Technology is Changing My Perspective of Winter
It`s the last day of February. Almost 6:00AM and still pitch black. There`s a cold sheen of near-freezing rain that is glazing our city that will possibly turn to a sheer coating of ice before rush hour. It`s a funny contrast to the 4+ inches of snow that covered everything less than 36 hours ago. These are the dark days of winter.
There are signs that Spring is coming. The days are getting longer and there are more mild streaks than in the last several months. But for every sign that it`s coming there is another harsh reminder that Winter won`t lose her grip on us yet. These are days that can test ones patience – and the belief that spring will ever come. It`s as if we`re in some sort of tipping point and there`s not enough signs to fully convince ourselves that Spring will come and that we may just slide back in to a whole lot more winter.
Technology has a way of broadening ones perspective. The buzz on Twitter and many food blogs across the world shows me they`ve already tipped to Spring.
The signs of Spring started in the South. Reading messages and seeing posts of seed swapping, early indoor planting and garden prepping have been evident for weeks.
Seed swaps started in Toronto over the last month. I`ve only become aware of this type of thing in recent years through the blog. Seeing places like the University of Toronto`s Hart House jammed shoulder to shoulder with people has been an eye opener on the vibrant gardening community within our city.
This weekend marked the beginning of planting season for many Toronto residents. They`ve started their seeds inside. Again, I had no idea people could start this early. Seeing that people are starting to plant (both in text and some pictures) in our city really starts to push that mental tipping point in the warmer direction.
As I watched the news last night I realized I was viewing a channel from Northern Ontario. It was neat to see their swap was this weekend. Much like our continent warms from `bottom` to `top`, things like planting and swapping slowly paint the surface from South to North. It`s been this way for as long as the planet has orbited – I just couldn`t see it.
Spring is definitely in the air – even if it`s frozen under a layer of snow or ice.
Comments
I’m looking forward to Spring as well. Here in London (Ontario) we’ve gotten tons of snow this year. It snowed every couple of days it seemed. We still have big snowbanks. As a result, although we have rainy weather this morning which I should be excited about…it’s leaving us with a slushy/icy mess all over the road.
When I got my seeds in the mail the other day is when I started to believe that maybe Spring will finally come after all!
In the 6 years I’ve been in London this is the first time I think there will still be snow on the ground for March Break!
We were elbow deep in soil this weekend getting to first round of seeds started.
One of the things I’ve noticed by watching spring thought the internet is that people are starting seeds earlier. They are inspired by their Southern friends and some even get into a bit of a panic thinking its too late to start.
So, although I have started some, Toronto friend please don’t dismay. If you want to plant outdoors on May 24, you can start your seeds in April.
Spring is certainly in the air though, the dog is acting like a wild animal.
We’ve had a 3 week run of warmish weather that has everyone with fruit trees worried. When checking our baby trees yesterday we saw that the buds have gone from the hard closed shiny stage to showing signs of velvet which means if the temps here go back to normal we could lose fruit and possibly even trees. So not good.
The mints are greening up, the tarragon is poking up through the ground, as is the sage. The thyme never really did die back. The garlic is about 4″ high and the shallots are beginning to peek through. I’ve got radicchio heading up in the tunnel.
Inside, the broccoli seedlings are up and yesterday we planted tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers. I think we should have held off on those another week or two but I already had reined in Michael for 2 weeks. Yesterday he got the bit in his teeth and was off!