204 NOTES ORIGINAL AND SELECTED. 



FingringJioe. — Mr. Thomas B. Grubb very kindly communicates the 

 following interesting summary of the weather at his farm, four miles S.E. of 

 Colchester (see Essex Naturalist, vol. x., p. 238 and p. 414 for records in 

 1897 S'lid 1898) : — 



The year came with mild open weather, January gave us nearly an 

 average rainfall but the land never got really wet, and tillage operations were 

 but little hindered. 



Grass lands were quite green at the close of the month. The downfall 

 in February was less, and the weather somewhat colder. Barley and oats 

 were sown towards the close of this month on light land. March proved a 

 dry month and remarkably cold, the thermometer falling well below the 

 freezing point in the screen, on 19 nights ; while boys were sliding on our 

 ponds and ditches on Lady-Day (25th inst.). April was somewhat ungenial, 

 with a rainfall about equal to the mean in this district, while in May the fall 

 was less, with temperature still low for the season, and but little sunshine, so 

 that the close of this month found vegetation somewhat backward, the 

 mangold plant in particular being very slow in coming to the hoe. June 

 brought a great change, with fine sunshine and heat the first 18 days, and all 

 crops made rapid progress ; but spring corn was wanting the rain badly, when 

 it came on the 19th and 20th. The remainder of this month and the first four 

 days of July were unsettled and showery. 



The total rainfall for June was only about half the average, and scarcely 

 sufficient for crops on the lighter soils. The hay crop was barely an average 

 one, and was somewhat hindered in the carting up to July 4th, but all secured 

 after that date could be stacked in prime condition. July proved hot and dry 

 after the 4th, and but for the heavy thunder rain on 23rd the feed and root 

 crops would have been severely punished, as they were in many other parts of 

 the kingdom, where the rain on that date was of only trifling amount. 



The writer began harvest on July 25th, somewhat in advance of many, 

 but had no reason to regret having been so forward, as the crops ripened 

 remarkably quickly, and a good deal of loss of grain by shelling occurred in 

 those fields that were left too long. August was a grand harvest month, 

 almost rainless, with the exception of a thunder shower on 15th, and a little 

 further fall at its close. Drought continued through September, the first rain 

 of sufficient volume to make the ploughing of grass and clover lands practi- 

 able, falling on the afternoon and night of the 29th. The bulk of the rain in 

 October fell near its close, the 27th and night following giving considerably 

 more than half of the total quantity registered. The first week in November 

 was V3ry wet, so wet as to make mangold carting almost impossible for a time, 

 but as there was no frost this month, and as weather after the loth inst. came 

 dry, the delay hereby occasioned had no serious consequences. The mangold 

 crop proved a heavy one, and the turnips and kohl-rabi improved very much 

 after the Michaelmas rain, so that what looked in September like a light 

 deficient root crop, proved by the middle of November to be a fairly abundant 

 one. 



December was mild till the 7th when a sudden fall of temperature took 

 place, and sharp frost prevailed till the 17th, the remainder of the month being 

 characterised by changeable weather, with alternate frosts and thaws. Below 

 will be found details of rainfall and temperature, taken daily : — 



