Hard to have a real spring when you don’t have a winter to speak of. We have Sprimmer, warm weather grading into hot. Then four months from now comes a season called simply “Hot”, mid June through the end of October, when Falnter begins. Three seasons: Sprimmer, Hot, Falnter. Festivus is in there somewhere.

Anyhoo, the redbuds are blooming here, a sure sign Sprimmer has arrived….

I saw the first garter snake today. Unusual.

Same here and the spiders are out. Mosquitoes imminent...

I always thought Spring has arrived when the mesquite trees start blooming.

Hundreds of robins in my woods the last few days, I assume they are heading back north.

That was what we were told when we moved to Midland. Never paid attention though. No mesquite around here in Boerne.

Birdy, I was fishing this evening at Buchanan and saw something very strange.

As you know we have plenty of Canada geese here but two strange geese flew closely by which I have never seen before. I've killed all species of North American geese except for a Ross.
These two were medium sized like Brant and with shortish necks. They were dusky tan and off white under the black tipped wings. They each had wide and prominent chevrons of light blue.

Weird. It reminded me of something maybe from South America.

Do you have any ideas?

Wow... I used to live about half way between Burnet and Lake Buchanan on HWY-29. In another life...

First guess….. Egyptian goose.

They arrived here in San Antonio maybe ten years back, spreading rapidly, likely to replace the black-bellies whistling duck as our common urban goose-like bird. Unlike whistling ducks they don’t need elevated cavities to nest in and they’re bigger.

My coverage ain’t amenable to copying images this am so google up images of Egyptian goose.

Good guess have seem a few around there had some strange ducks at the fish hatchery on inks downstream this winter also.The whistling ducks population is climbing as well,some say climate change,I say lack of duck hunters these days!

Snowed here Friday...............

Nekid Jesse bushes are gettin ready to pop here

Most were cleaned out but we got them if you look around.

Here in South Central Missouri grass is starting to Green Up in the fields. We are noticing some trees starting to bud. Frost will get the Fruit Trees again this year. The next couple days are going to be nice. Then back cold for two or three days, then back nice for next weekend. This is different. Normally my days off are when we have bad weather, and it gets nice when I am working.

Bob R

Supposed to push 90 here today at 87 degrees for the forecasted high. It’s got to be close to a record.

I usually visit that area in March, The Blue Bonnets are usually just starting. Last year at the fish hatchery there were mostly Buzzards.

There were tiny blooms on a few trees here 3 weeks ago, northern Arkansas.

I'll never live where it's warn year round ever again,, ok.

Agarita’s are blooming. Bucks still got antlers. And some does are still hot. Turkeys gobbling in the morning. Rattlesnakes are moving.

Blue bonnets are coming on strong in the yard. Going to be a good year for them as we got some rain. Our peach trees started blooming about 2 weeks ago. Of course still expecting a blue norther to knock the peaches off the tree, if past years are any indication.

They just said on news, it’s going to be 95 degrees in DFW today, that’s not good for a lot of reasons, watch out for buzz bunny’s and copper heads.

Already have some back, started week before last.

No snow on the ground in north Idaho. Less than half the normal snowpack I believe.

I can see into Buchanan from my lease I’m getting off of. It’s pretty low!

Red wasps all came out this weekend. Buzzing me on the porch, as well as in the toolsheds. I started slipping a CCI shotshell in my front pocket on Saturday also. It's still dang February and just too early for all that.....

A compelling reason why I couldn’t live in such a region.

Southern Oklahoma, the high today is 89°F. 🤔

I have my reservations. The yellow dandelions are popping up, but that's about it. Means my bees will soon be out and about.
It's way too early for "spring", I don't like it. Not that I have any choice.
Hip surgery, trying to get the garden ready, getting the bees healthy and set up for a nice nectar flow.
Problem is, if the nectar flow starts now, and then we have the standard March blizzard or freeze and it kills all the blooms back. Then we have no nectar flow.....and I'm feeding bees all summer.....again! 😖

My purple martins were early this year

Looking at the longer range stuff, the two days in the 50s later this week look like a last gasp of winter. Everything in March is in the 60s and 70s.

It’s still February and I’ve already mowed twice. lol

Our "fake Spring" ends today. 46 degrees this morning and it hit 59 yesterday. No snow left down here in the valleys, but we have well over 100% average up high. Anyway, going to rain then snow tonight. Mornings back in the low 20s.

It's been a mild, wet winter. I'll break 5 inches of rain tonight for this month, which is huge. That's almost a third of our annual rainfall.

Depends on where you are at currently. But our area of TX skeeters have been out for quite some time. The cool snap slowed em just a bit but not much.
Thankfully the skeeter hawks are just now in full force.
Scorpions have been stupid since I got south in November. Thankful they dont' exist in Alaska

Pecans are not nearly close to budding yet so winter is not over. Then there is the thunder in January multiple times that leads to frost in April.

Its way to hot the last few days and we made sausage the weekend, only time available for folks.. ugh.. trying to dry sausage now, thankfully we made small ones to dry, and the AC locked on 62 and the dehumidifier and fan blowing full time now. If I'm lucky maybe by Wednesday they will dry and be safe instead of spoil.

It was upper 80s yesterday but not sure how hot exactly.

It's past February 15th. Winter is unofficially over in San Antonio. That gives the rest of us some hope for the near future.

kwg

Here on the upper Texas coast, my grape vines and fig tree are starting to bud out. Nothing yet on the peach, lemon, and pecan trees. Had to mow the grass first time this year on Friday. Last time was in early to mid November.

Supposed to get up to 95 here today, too.
It will break the local record for this date if it does. 🤪

Extreme fire danger here today and tomorrow, this has became a every spring thing, that 30” of rain we got in two months last summer has grass tall and ready to go, hate this crap, them young men on these small fire departments are my heroes!

It didn't freeze here last night and I'm currently fighting thawed gumbo this morning in northeast Montana.

Just turned the A/C on in tractor while headed back to the haystack. High of 50F today but a low of -1F tonight.

All kinds of fun.

Snowed on the mtn Saturday supposed to be 66 today 🤷‍♂️

@ rost495

I've seen frost on both mesquite and pecan trees that had budded out.
That old wives tale of, "It won't frost after the pecan/mesquite trees bud out!", is just so much horse pooky!

First killdeer today!

Now it’s snowing. Wind chill as low as 0 in the forecast for tomorrow. First calf today. Poor little thing!

I've paid attention to the weather for a long time. Mainly because I've been in the hay and cattle business and I can only recall one time that the mesquite trees were fooled.

That was going to be my first guess.
We've got them thick here.
Some neighbors used to think they were cute. Until they decided their property was a nice place to hang out and started squawking before the sun came up. Now they're
asking me how to get rid of them. BB pistol rd to the head at 450 fps dispatches them nicely. At least Muskovies Don't make a lot of racket.

Yes sir, but it does happen.

You can't fool Mother Nature! She will do as she pleases! LOL!

John told me, "The mesquite trees are budding out. It won't frost again."
That night, we added a joint to the drill string. John and me stepped off the drilling floor to find a heavy frost covering the grass. Then I showed him the "budding mesquite"...in a heavy frost!
Harold told me we wouldn't have another frost because the pecan trees were budding out. Within a week, while out turkey hunting, we observed a pecan grove, all budded out in a heavy frost.

Point being, as a general rule, those old rules apply....except when they don't.

About the only "rule" I ever applied that seemed to actually work was one my dad taught me.
"There will always be at least one more cold snap (he didn't say freeze!) after Easter."
Can't say that I've ever seen it fail.

Thanks Birdy.

Yes, BB, you came to the Buchanan Lake shindig.

I hope you are doing well. Take care and God Bless