Rain But Not Snow

Last night, the forecast was rain turning into snow.

The trouble with the unseasonably warm March is that plants came up and started blooming.  In March, 2011, only two flowers were blooming.  Right now, there are eleven kinds of flowers blooming, plus the asparagus and rhubarb are up. All of that is very nice, but when a bad frost hits, all the glory is in danger.

Yesterday, I took some photos.  There are around a thousand daffodils interspersed with hyacinths.

 The cherry tree is in full bloom but all the petals could easily be wiped out in a snowstorm.

It would be a shame to lose the blossoms, but mine is an ornamental cherry tree, so there won't be any fruit anyhow. Of greater concern is the pear tree.  

Three years ago, after waiting over a decade after its planting, I harvested the first Bartlett pear.  It was wonderful.  The following year, there were two pears, and last year four.  This year, however, the pear tree is full of buds.  If the tree does in fact flower, if the mason and bumble bees go to work, and if the hard frosts stay away, I could have a bushel of pears by late September .   

Last night, the rains did come, but not the snow.  The next few nights will be cool, but we may be past the worst, and of course, Sunday is April 1.  

There still could be blizzards, there could be killing frosts.  I am keeping my fingers crossed, and enjoying the flowers as they are.

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Wade Peterson's latest short story, "The Mechanic" is at Black Coffee Fiction http://blackcoffeefiction.blogspot.com

I foresee this being a series of short stories about two unlikely superheroes.  You never know with Wade.