Spring “officially” began at 7:21 p.m. EDT on March 20, 2011. “The vernal equinox, day and night are each approximately twelve hours long (with actual time of equal day and night, in the Northern Hemisphere, occurring a few days before the vernal equinox). The sun crosses the celestial equator going northward; it rises exactly due east and sets exactly due west,” according to the Old Farmer’s Almanac.
Don’t you just love the signs that guided farmers of the past to till, plant, pick and so much more? Many still use these signs today with great success. So, what are “signs” of spring that you always pay attention to? Signs that tell you spring is here or it’s time to till your land or plant your first crop?
Here at Verde Farm, forsythia is the first true sign of spring. They start to bloom, bursting in bright yellow buds, prior to any other blooms only surpassed by early blooming daffodil varieties. The bright yellow is the perfect color to start spring for us as it is such a happy, bright long lost friend.
Another sign of spring is the hatching of chicks. We don’t have any just yet, but we do have Smoke, one of our Silkie hens sitting on a nice clutch. She looks a little worse for wear minus her head feathers but they will be back soon. We are excited to get our first Silkie chicks, so stay tuned.
Won’t you share your signs of spring with us?
Have a great week,
52 comments:
Amy I missed the moon as the cloud was to thick where I live :((
The colour of spring is so inspiring for all crafty ppl, the little chicks alone so bright in their yellow feathers..
Have a great day .
hugs pat in tas :))
beautiful~
this is our first spring in the mountains and we can't wait to see it!
wow...we've never had a silkie...very pretty.
I agree about the light from the moon...it was something! The best sign of spring here is no snow... The garden is starting to come to life, but we are nowhere near yo.
I didn't get to see the Supermoon last night as it was really storming here in northern CA. But the moon tonight is bright and I'm happy to see it with the break between storms:) Love your photos of your signs of spring!
Well, my earliest sign of spring is usually the lovely smell of the skunks making themselves known. But, I'll take it if it means warmer days are on their way! Soon we'll have baby ducks and geese on the pond, and then things will be in full spring swing. I can't wait!
I don't have any forsythia here, but the neighbor does. I have peach trees loaded with blossoms and that pink flower bush, plus I have had the windows opened for 3 days in a row!
Can't wait to see your little chicks!
No supermoon sighting here - it was cloudy and rainy all weekend... Signs of spring - mud, mud and mud -- a little bit of snow to rain and then mostly rain --- means spring is coming!
It's still not very spring-like over on this side of the continent. Today we had some sunshine but it was very cold. There is one tiny clump of miniature daffodils in bloom, but no more than that.
Seeing the first Robin, is a sign here in Montana, that spring is close. When I hear the geese flying over, I know it's closer still. But when I see the Swallows flying around and singing their spring song, or see the first little delicate Trillium, that's when we know it has finally in the Rocky Mountains!
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Longer days, crocus and early daffs. I always plant peas on St. Pat's Day and did put a few onions in on Sat. Happy Spring:@)
The forsythia is our sign of spring also. They were pretty much in full bloom this weekend.
The moon was big,bright and gorgeous. I love when the tulips start to pop through. Although we won't be seeing this yet. Snow is expected today!! YUCK!
It's still cold here. We are at a higher elevation than the surrounding countryside so we still have ice and snow in places. It's raining this morning with snow due all this week. It's muddy. The only thing peeping up from the ground is the hellebore plant.
I'm hoping that one of ours will get broody soon so I can set her up with a clutch. I'd like a couple more Americaunas (we only have one right now) because they're eggs are so fun!
My sign of spring is the box of Kleenex that is always with me since that yellow bush in your photos started blooming. My nose is red and I look like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer! aaaaa-chooo!
It's our first time too here in Southwest Wisconsin...I'm guessing the first sign of spring is the tapping of the trees. I miss my forsythia trees in Illinois...I'm going to have to plant some here.
I don't have any, but there is lots of forsythia blooming here. My grandmother had a couple bushes when I was growing up.
And the cherry trees are blooming.
The Bradford pears are dropping the petals from their trees, and much to the dismay of my eyes and nose, the pine tree pollen is everywhere!
Have a great week! :)
In our neighborhood, forsythia, tulip trees, and Bradford pears are signs of spring!!! :D
Visible grass.
Ditching the triple down parka in favor of something lighter
Driving, if only briefly, with the windows down.
Mud!
The super moon was gorgeous here too! Our forsythia is just beginning to bud...our daffodils are blooming...and the cows are BEGGING to get back out into the meadow. :) They'll have to wait a little longer until the grass is a little thicker, though!
our first signs are when the Robins are back and when the lambs start arriving,it is a wonderful time of year!
I love your silkie.
Wonderful post info and photos. I use nature as my sign of spring like the farmers do, my dad taught me how to read the sun for time and to watch the clouds for weather changes as well as the smell and feel of the air. Papa says I am his weather Alminac and more dependable of weather perdiction then the weather man lol. Have a great first official full day of spring.
We heard "peepers" the other evening. While everything else seems slow to wake up,those baby frogs singing from the creek in the woods are a sure sign spring will come! -Mary
Our fist sign of Spring-Wine Time table and chairs set out under the Oaks! Check. Daffies. Finally. Check. Love your Forsythia! Ours hasn't popped yet. Have a wonderful week Amy! I swear I am going to get outside and get some pictures and do Verde Farm Friday this week! Ima really going to try Amy. Really.
I was out hunting for robins yesterday and didn't notice anything popping on my forsythia yet. But had good luck on the robin hunt. I kept under cover and they just kept coming into the corner of our yard. Our yard still has snow and sopping wet everywhere. So glad spring is here and soon the flowers will be too!
It is so wonderful to hear birds again. I don't realize that they are gone, until I hear them upon their return. Well, not all birds leave, but they just don't sing quite so happily in the morning until spring is around the corner.
I enjoy watching buds on trees and shrubs as they begin to swell with the promise of nice weather to come.
No supermoon to be seen here. Isn't that just like us moms - letting ourselves go for the sake of the family. Let her know she needs to do something for herself once in a while. lol
I posted about signs of spring today, too. I guess great minds think alike. The forsythia is one of the first signs around my house, too. I love spring.
My goat stipped our Forsynthia from all bark.. so it's not very alive right now! But anyway, my first sign of spring is Robins. Then it's daffodils. I love daffodils!
Beautiful pictures! It seemed like spring here yesterday and then today it snowed! Sigh. It's OK though, I know it's here :) Our first signs are the Red Winged blackbirds returning, and then the Robins. The Groundhogs are out too!
Well thats easy when the bees are buzzing you now that Springs in full effect!
I love Silkie's and the little determined look on their sweet faces.
I can't wait to see her brood. My favorite thing just before they hatch is to be able to hear the peeps inside the shell. I never knew that until I had chicks hatch and I stood there listening. It was magical. Does the same thing happen to ducks do you know Amy?
Daffodils, robins, and buzzards are my signs of Spring ;) I can't say that I am a real fan of Spring because it means a LOT of rain here in the Northwest, but I do love Summer and that is just around the corner! Your little Silkie hen is very cute.
Hmmm - sign of spring? I'm sweating...and cranky! Tim says I have SAD Summer Affected Disorder. I hate being hot.
How exciting to be expecting Silkie chicks. I bet they'll be adorable! We had great weather over the weekend, although a little chilly in the low 40's, but today it snowed. Bummer!
Staci
A sure sign of spring here in Southern Maine is a snow storm, which is occurring as I type. Happy Spring to you my friend.
as I type. Happy Spring my friend!
Here in NE MN the Spring snow is just heavier and wetter than the Winter kind!
Eggs! We have goose eggs everywhere! Things are just starting to turn green here.
I went visiting and didn't arrive home until late last night and was admiring the way the full moon was glowing through the fog as it's Autumn here. I love how it doesn't matter where in the world we are we all share the same sunlight and are entranced/delighted by full moons.
I know when Spring is arriving as the Wattle Tree flowers. The Golden Wattle may be Oz's national flower but I prefer it's cousin the Silver wattle as Golden's give me hayfever....aaachooo!!!
Daffodils and Violets are the first signs of Spring for me. I love seeing the patches of violets in bloom.
As for planting , my Dad always said to wait until you hear the call of a whip-por-will to plant corn. I've never heard a whip-por-will around our farmette , so I wait to hear it's call at my Mom's before planting.
~ Farm Friend Blessings ~
Nothing is blooming here yet sadly. My signs of spring are robins and red-winged blackbirds and new goat kids!
Well, we got a huge snow storm on Sunday. But that's OK, it melts pretty fast here this time of year.--Inger
Love your blooms - thanks for sharing! Here it's still brown. But I've seen a few insects, and like Dreaming said, the birds are back.
Happy Spring to you! No doubt you can really feel the Spring on your farm-The farm environment welcomes each new season in its own special way.
The moon was stunning. Loved it.
Spring in my neck of the woods? Means the grass is returning from brown to green. The trees are budding, and the neighborhood birds are going wild at the feeders. I live in the heart of suburbia but my neighborhood has an abundance of deer, coyote and foxes. I am hoping this year to avoid a doe placing a fawn in my backyard.
Today was such a beautiful day outside! Your flowers are so beautiful Amy! Can't wait to see your baby chicks! My neighbors down the road have baby goats. They are so cute! They are the size of their chickens!
Have a Great Day!
Angela
I bet Spring is a happening time at Verde Farm. We spent the first days of spring in sunny Fla, to come back to snow in NY. I hope the weather stays mild for the new babies on the way.
The moon was super the other night.
Our signs of spring are just beginning in the northern part of the state. The daffodils are just beginning to pop up as are my hostas. The grass is slowly turning from dead brown to bright green. As for gardening, I have always used the Almanac when planning times for planting.
No signs of spring yet in North Eastern Massachusetts ~ can't wait for it though!
A sure sign of Spring for us - the first night on the porch sharing in a couple of glasses of wine!
Oh, and I guess, the trimming of the berry bushes, crocuses blooming, and the dogs blowing their winter coats, too.
Hi Amy....I had to stop by for a little Spring. Spring has decided to leave PA....we have been thrust back into winter weather.. Oh my.....
So, your forsythia really picked up my spirits!!
See you on Farm Friends Friday!
I posted my signs of spring on my blog last week
http://thebeeladyfromhilltopfarm.blogspot.com/2011/03/spring.html
...but dangit...it's cold out again.
Bee Lady
Grass!
Sure, it's muddy BROWN grass but grass nonetheless ♥
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