Will April Fool’s weather last all month?

Yesterday evening we saw dragonflies hovering over the backyard wet spot that is now snow and ice free. Some plants in the front flower garden are emerging through the leaf mulch. In the quarter century we’ve lived here, I’ve never seen as many “gopher” mounds and tunnels as there are this spring. I’ll knock them down next week with the drag harrow. I can’t pull the harrow with the back blade still on the tractor and we don’t want to tempt fate by taking the back blade off with snow in Sunday’s forecast (despite today’s 80+℉).

While watching the dragonflies, we heard a number of frogs making different sounds. In fact it was because we went out onto the deck to hear the frogs that we saw the dragonflies. I’m not sure but we may also have observed a bluebird. While putzing about the yard today I closed the door to the back bluebird house. [Writing that reminded me to go close the door on the front yard house. That’s done and as we finished, we noticed a lot of day lily plants just beginning to emerge.]

emerging day lilies April 15, 2020

Photo by J. Harrington

Reports are that local rivers may crest over the weekend. It’s not clear if anyone’s factoring in the precipitation we’re expecting on top of the snow melt flows. This April’s weather qualifies for an “All of the above and other” award. I don’t recall any other April in which I’ve managed to get myself overheated before mid-month whille outside doing not much of anything.

In April

James Hearst

This I saw on an April day:
Warm rain spilt from a sun-lined cloud,
A sky-flung wave of gold at evening,
And a cock pheasant treading a dusty path
Shy and proud.


And this I found in an April field:
A new white calf in the sun at noon,
A flash of blue in a cool moss bank,
And tips of tulips promising flowers
To a blue-winged loon.


And this I tried to understand
As I scrubbed the rust from my brightening plow:
The movement of seed in furrowed earth,
And a blackbird whistling sweet and clear
From a green-sprayed bough.

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