Jeepers, peepers

Last week, a weather report for our region rather amusingly warned of extreme conditions, predicting record highs in the mid-70s. Now that the temperatures have dropped back within normal expectations for this time of year, I have reluctantly closed the windows and turned the heat back on. It is hard to trust the weather in any season in New England, but such an exceptionally warm start to spring after such a mild winter makes me wonder about the long-term trends in our warming climate, as well as the potential of another hard frost now that flowers are blooming weeks ahead of schedule.The ticks are out in force, and have been active throughout the winter, which means there will be more opportunities for exposure to tick-borne diseases. It is possible that their hosts (the deer mice) were more vulnerable to predators without the cover of snow, but just as likely that more of them survived the winter with greater access to food. Meanwhile, the wood frogs chirped with glee with the warm weather even though we did not experience the “big night” of the first warm rain that can bring out the amphibians in great numbers as they return to their pools to breed. There are hummingbirds in our area already and it is very early for them to be here. Ephemeral wildflowers are blooming in our woodlands, and will continue to do so even if the weather stays cold for a while longer. I watch the flowering trees, particularly apples, because they are very vulnerable to frost.Some things are comfortingly regular, though, despite the vicissitudes of the weather. The old winter stars are low in the west in the early evening, and in the hours before dawn I see the summer constellations that soon will replace them. Venus and Jupiter have been especially close for the last few weeks and Mars is still quite large in Leo. In the coming weeks, spring will be well established. I will look longingly at my garden but will resist the urge to plant it prematurely. I’ll welcome the warm days when they return, but for now it is fine with me that the night sky is clear and cold, as experience tells me the end of March should be. Tim Abbott is program director of Housatonic Valley Association’s Litchfield Hills Greenprint. His blog is at greensleeves.typepad.com.