Feb. 6-12, 2012

I now suspect that if we work with machines the world will seem to us to be a machine, but if we work with living creatures, the world will appear to us as a living creature.

-Wendell Berry, Renewing Husbandry

The Singing Cardinal Moon, full on Feb. 7, wanes throughout two weeks ahead, coming into its last phase on Valentine’s Day at 12:04 p.m. Rising in the evening and setting in the late morning, this moon will move overhead before sunrise.

The moon will lie in Scorpio on Feb. 12-14, perfect for setting out your first onion sets – if snow cover has melted. Fish with the moon above you either before dawn or before sunset, as the barometer drops prior to the arrival of the Feb. 11 and 15 high-pressure systems.

The early morning stars in February are a vision of evenings in June. When you get up for exercise and chores, the Summer Triangle will be coming up in the east, easily recognized by the “Northern Cross” lying on its side along the horizon. The tomato-planting star, Arcturus, is moving overhead, and July’s boxy Libra and the red-starred Sagittarius are taking up positions for the center of the year.

Weather patterns

The second week of February is typically chilly, with high temperatures near or below freezing better than 60 percent of the time. The likelihood of below-zero temperatures falls to half of that of last week, however.

Feb. 11 ushers in the third major cold wave of the month, typically the last severe front of winter. By Feb. 14, chances for highs in the 20s or below fall to only 10 percent, and by Feb. 15, chances for spring warmth above 40 degrees jump to 40 percent in most of the country – the highest so far this year.

This change is so dramatic on regional weather charts that it can easily be called the beginning of early spring – a six-week period of changeable conditions during which milder weather gradually overwhelms the cold.

Zeitgebers for this week include sleepy flies and cabbage moths emerging in greenhouses, sparrows building nests, the arrival of red-winged blackbirds (along with a little movement in the maple sap) and increasing activity of skunks and opossums after dark.

Feb. 6: The evenings are becoming noticeably longer, daylight lasting well past 6 p.m., and the cardinals are starting to sing all day.

Feb. 7: With the powerful full moon today, watch for late abortions in weak animals. This full moon may also encourage blizzard conditions in the Great Plains and the East by Feb. 10.

Feb. 8: Consider herbs for your livestock as you look through seed catalogs. Traditional supplements to ward off abortion in sheep and goats include rose hips, hawthorn berries, raspberry leaves, tansy leaves and hollyhock root. Herbs to help with kidding and lambing: peppermint, thyme and chamomile.

Feb. 9: Continue to check the “winter basics:” Make sure your buildings are properly ventilated, but keep animals from drafts; ensure there’s plenty of water and that it’s not frozen; exercise the flock and herd throughout the coldest months; and check weight status of each animal on a regular basis.

Feb. 10: Maple syrup season starts in most areas by Feb. 15. If your sap isn’t running yet, it should be on the move within the next 30 days. Around the yard, bulb season opens this month as far north as Chicago, with the first aconites and snowdrops opening in sheltered microclimates. Pussy willows push out, too.

Feb. 11: Weigh new animals as exactly as you can, recording pounds and ounces. Write down the exact birth time, day and the moon’s position, current weather conditions and, if possible, the barometric pressure. Note if the mother had difficulties giving birth.

All that information can be used to estimate birth time next year or possible conditions when those new animals give birth to their own.

Feb. 12: This time of year, many livestock owners make use of an energy lick tank supplement. Some owners say that use of such supplements – made from homogenized molasses and filled with vitamins and nutrients – not only helps break down roughage, but can cut grain costs almost in half.