In every year there are days between winter and spring which rightly belong to neither; days when the round of seasons seems to be at a standstill, as though the inner impulse which held on visibly enough through the worst of the hard weather has failed just when it should begin to quicken toward the first of the better times…. – Corners of Old Grey Gardens, 1912

The Transition Week to Late Winter

The Camel Cricket Moon, full on the 25th, wanes throughout the period, bringing some relief from “full-moon chill.” On the 31st of January, the Sun reaches a declination of 17 degrees 35 minutes, one fourth of its way to spring equinox. Now as the day lengthens, the advance of spring quickens. Crows know all about the expanding daylight. Their migration cycle typically starts at the early edge of the night’s retreat. Junco movement begins in mid-January, too, just as the sun comes into Aquarius.

Natural Calendar

During the fourth week of January, the Season of Deep Winter comes to a close and the Season of Late Winter takes its place, often dominating the year until the third week of February. The Season of the 10-Hour Days in Yellow Springs begins Jan. 27 and continues through Feb. 22, when the day’s length reaches 11 hours. The Season of Rising Temperatures starts on Jan. 29 and warms North America until July 18, at which point summer averages reach their peak and then hold steady until July 29 when the Season of Falling Temperatures begins – and keeps cooling the land until the following January.

The Weather in the Week Ahead

Under the influence of the full Camel Cricket Moon, the 25th and 26th are expected to be some of the crueler days of the month. And although the 31st can bring subfreezing temperatures 40 percent of the time, that day introduces a possibility for highs in the 60s for the first time since Jan. 7. Between the 26th and 28th, dry conditions prevail 75 percent of the years, and the 27th is the sunniest day in January, bringing an 80 percent chance of clear to partly cloudy skies. The 30th is the cloudiest day in the second half of January, with 70 percent chance of overcast conditions, and the wettest.

Countdown to Spring

• Just a few days until cardinals start to sing before dawn

• Two weeks until doves join the cardinals, and maple sap flows

• Three weeks until the first red-winged blackbirds arrive in the wetlands

• Four weeks to the first snowdrop bloom and the official start of Early Spring

• Five weeks to crocus season and major pussy willow emerging season

• Six weeks to the beginning of the morning robin chorus before sunrise

• Seven weeks to daffodil time

• Eight weeks to the major wildflower bloom

• Nine weeks until the yellow blossoms of forsythia bushes appear

• 10 weeks to tulip season

The S.A.D. Stress Index

The likelihood of seasonal stress begins to fall in February. The average amount of sunlight increases, especially in the South, the night is shrinking, temperatures rise, and the arrival of Early Spring offers the promise of relief – if not actual relief – from seasonal affective disorders.

 

Key for Interpreting the S.A.D. Index: 

Totals of:

75 - 65: S.A.D. Alert: Severe Stress for those who suffer from seasonal affective disorders

64 - 50: Severe to moderate stress

49 - 35: Moderate stress

34 - 25: Light to moderate stress

24 and below: Only people with extreme sensitivity to S.A.D. experience seasonal affective disorders below an Index reading of 24.

 

Day            Clouds       Weather       Dayl     Totals

Feb. 1:             24                 20                 22                 64

Feb. l0:            23                 23                 19                 65

Feb. 20:           22                 19                 18              59

Feb. 28:           22                 19                 17             58

 

In the Field and Garden

In the final days of January, average temperatures start to rise almost all over North America. The coyotes know it; they have begun to look for mates. Scout your property for signs of predators that will soon be interested in your lambs and kids and chickens.

Pink or yellow hibiscus plants should be flowering in your south windows now. Varieties of this genus can be grown from seed in the spring and summer, brought indoors in the fall, and bloom throughout the winter.

Keep chickens away from goat feed and mangers to prevent the transfer of coccidiosis, which may cause abortion.

An Approximate Schedule of Cardinal Song

During the time of winter solstice, early mornings are quiet in the Miami Valley. The cardinals sleep late, singing only sporadically after about 7:40 a.m. By the middle of January, however, the steady growth of the day’s length intensifies the mating cycle, and cardinal song begins to consistently precede sunrise by about half an hour through equinox. When April approaches, the birds rise even earlier, sometimes calling an hour before dawn. By the end of the end of May, most cardinals reach their limit around 4 a.m. After that, they settle into the longest days of the year, sleeping a little later in the mornings, their music softening as the nights grow longer.

The following schedule, based on observations in Yellow Springs over several decades, sketches the approximate parallel of cardinal song to sunrise. Although sunrise times are different everywhere, the approximate interval between dawn and cardinal song is relatively stable. Temperature, cloud cover, precipitation and, most likely, individual birds all significantly influence the song times, sometimes changing them by 15 or 20 minutes. Still, the overall pattern is somewhat predictable, and it provides one more context for natural history as well as for spiritual geography. All times listed are Eastern Standard Time.

Day    Sunrise         First Cardinal Song 

Dec. 21      7:53 a.m.        7:40 a.m.  

Jan. 1        7:57 a.m.        7:40 a.m.

Jan. 10      7:57 a.m.        7:30 a.m.

Jan. 31      7:45 a.m.        7:20 a.m.

Feb. 3        7:42 a.m.        7:15 a.m.

March 3      7:06 a.m.           6:33 a.m.

April 2         6:18 a.m.           5:34 a.m.

April 16      5:56 a.m.          5:12 a.m.

April 21       5:49 a.m.           5:05 a.m.

May 2          5:34 a.m.          4:43 a.m.

June 21      5:06 a.m.          4:04 a.m.

Almanack Literature

Rich Kin Folk

Submitted for Poor Will’s Outhouse Story Contest

By Kate Crutcher, Franklin, Tenn.

I can remember when I was 5 years old, my family went to visit my aunt and uncle who had just moved into a new house.

Back in the 1950s, I assumed all country folk had outhouses. I can’t tell you anything about the house they lived in, but the one thing that will stay in my mind forever was the outhouse.

I noticed it was bigger than ours at home. I could not believe my eyes when I had to relieve myself and found that this outhouse had not one but two seats!

From that day on, I referred to my aunt and uncle as my “rich kin folk” for they had a two-seater outhouse.

ANSWERS TO LAST WEEK’S SCKRAMBLER

LTTPAE PLATTE

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TAMT MATT

TASP SPAT

TTAH THAT

TVA VAT

LAFT FLAT

ABT BAT

NAGT GNAT

CTA CAT

THIS WEEK’S RHYMING SCKRAMBLER

NORST

ROPT

MOTR

TORF

OERTT

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STODIRT

XHRTOE

SSRTAO

In order to estimate your SCKRAMBLER IQ, award yourself 15 points for each word unscrambled, adding a 50-point bonus for getting all of them correct. If you find a typo, add another 15 points to your IQ. Yes, you are a genius.

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