SWELLING BUDS IN DANGER 



Winter-Kill May Be the Fate of Many 

 Shrubs and Trees — Forsythia and Dande- 

 lions Bloom in New Bedford " ' j; 



[Prom the New Bedford Standara, Jan. 25] 



Spring in January, buds swelling, early 

 flowers blooming, and the grass growing 

 green, are among; the results ot the sur- 

 prising spell of warm winter weather which 

 New Bedford has been experiencing this 

 season. The probabilities of a severe cold 

 snap the first of February, horticultural 

 experts say, threaten many shrubs and 

 trees with the danger of winter-kill. 



William Keith, superintendent ot the T. 

 M. Stetson estate, told the Standard this 

 morning that on the north side of the 

 Thomas M. Stetson estate gate on Ash 

 street, a forsythia has been blooming since 

 shortly after Christmas, and was in bloom 

 this week. He also reports that maple 

 trees are bleeding at cuts and scars— an in- 

 dication that the sap is running and a 

 very unusual condition in January. A cold 

 snap will raise the bark from the pith 

 (which carries the sap) and endanger the 

 trees with winter-kill. 



"Buds of all kinds," Mr. Keith stated, 

 "have swelled to a more or less degree. 

 Unless the weather continues mild through- 

 out the winter, the season will be hard on 

 shrubs." 



For twelve years Mr. Keith has i,:6pt 

 careful records of the weather in connec- 

 tion with his work. He declares that 

 taking the average of any three months 

 the year and comparing it with the aver- 

 age of any three months of the same sea 

 son in other years, the difference l! 

 very slight. His records since 190,3 show; 

 the following weather conditions: 

 JAN. 23 



1913. Clear, light wind, northwest, high 

 temperature (at 10 o'clock) 42; low, 32. 



1912 Clear, light northwest wind, high 

 temperature, 18; low, 7. 



1911. Partly cloudy, light northwest 

 wind, high temperature, 46; low, 2.3. 



1010. Clear, light variable winds, mostly 

 northwest to southwest; high temperaturi 

 2S. low, 13. 



1900. Partly cloudy; light winds, north- 

 west to west; high, 45; low, 32. 



1908. Partly cloudy, light winds, north- 

 west to southwest. Blizzard of 15 inches of 

 snow on Jan. 24. High temperature 32; 

 low, 8. 



1907. Snow, light winds, southeast 

 northeast. High, 24; low, 3. Thermometer 

 at 13, Jan. 24. 



1006. Light snow flurries. High wind, 

 north to northeast. High temperature, 29; 

 low, 17. 



1905. Snow, northeast gale; a blizzard in 

 afternoon and evening. High, 28; low, 24. 

 nm. Clear, blowy, west wind. High, 20; 



low, 11. 



winds. 



lSiO.3. Snow, heavy fall. Light 

 northeast. High temperature, 31; lo' 



Among the flowers that are reported In 

 blossom are dandelions, tulips, pussy wil- 

 lows, pansies. Apple trees and shrub buds 

 are swelling. 



Dr. Williarri G. Branecomb picked 

 snowdrop In his garden this morning. 



Crocuses and Snowdrops 



Bnt No Ice, Snow or LosgrlnK to Speak 

 of About RntlanA, Vt. 



[From a Rutland (Vt.) despatch In the Burlington 

 News] 



The claim in floral catalogues that cer- 

 tain hardy bulbs will bloom beside a snow- 

 bank is demonstrated on the lawn of Dr. 

 Ray B. Smith in this city, where may be 

 seen crocuses and snowdrops, the blossoms 

 looking as fresh as on an ordinary April 

 morning These bulbs usually blossom out 

 of door at Easter time. 



The continued warm weather is causing 

 buds of all the .early flowering trees to 

 swell and for weeks "pussy" willows have 

 been in evidence. Not once this season has 

 the thermometer reached the zero point in 

 Rutland and only on four occasions in De- 

 cember and January has the early morning 

 temperature been below 20°. 



Ai no time has the snow been over three 

 inches deep in Rutland and at the present 

 time there is none in the v.alleys and only 

 an inch on the summit of Mt. ICillington. 

 Not a log has yet been moved out of the 

 vi'oods by lumbermen and no ice has been 

 cut. 



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the nio.st in one day was 1.14 iiiohcs on 

 the 8th. Two inclies of snow fell during 

 the month and this is the sniallest 

 snowfall in .January on record at Blue 

 Hill with the exception of 1911, when 

 there was only one inch. The normal 

 snowfall for the month is 10 inches and 

 in .January. 1912. there were 2H inches. 



There was less than the usual rela- 

 tive huniiditv. the mean for the month 

 heiuf? 69.0 per cent. There was 7 

 per cent, less than tlie usual amount of 

 sun.shine and somewhat more than the 

 averaffe cloudiness. There was more 

 I wind than customary and the prevail- 

 ing direction was southwest, which is 

 unusual in .lanuary. 'Hie maximum 

 velocitv of the montli was 68 miles per 

 hour from the .south on the Srd. Tliia 

 was the liiiilu'st velocity in three years 

 iind was an ncconuHUiiment of the lowest 

 barometer since Xovember. 1904. The 

 UK'nn barometric pressure for the month, 

 however, was decidedly above normal. 

 At the end of the month there was no 

 'ce in the neighboring ponds and no 

 frost in the ground. 



L. A. Wells. 



