Despite a relatively mild winter with limited cold and snow that suggested an early spring arrival, that expectation proved mistaken. A particularly cold and wet March—nearly breaking records—stretched well into the first week of April and dampened those hopes.
The harsh March conditions limited outdoor recreation and delayed the beginning of spring sports for both high school and youth competitors. Plants in our gardens, particularly those sensitive to temperature fluctuations like hydrangeas, were fooled into producing buds prematurely, only to have them destroyed by single-digit wind-chills. This virtually guarantees a summer with few or no blooms.
Yet a day or two of genuine spring weather transforms everything! The pleasant temperatures on Monday and Tuesday reminded us how quickly we forget Mother Nature’s March brutality.
Undoubtedly, more cold spells will arrive before summer. For those of us in Eastern Massachusetts, “spring” itself seems contradictory—the ocean remains frigid enough to keep our coastal region roughly 10 degrees cooler than areas just 10 miles inland.
Still, we appreciate whatever warmth comes our way, and the past few days have been as good as it gets.