OBSERVED IN HERTFORDSHIRE IN 1902. 
43 
The sowing of all the spring crops was carrieJ out under 
exceptionally favourable conditions, owing to the disintegrating 
effect upon the soil of the long frost in February, the moistening 
influence of the wet week which followed, and the almost con¬ 
tinuously dry weather in March and April, by which that wet 
week was succeeded. Even in May, although some rain fell almost 
every day, the amounts were, as a rule, small, and by that time the 
ground had become so dry that it quickly absorbed any superfluous 
moisture. Consequently all the spring corn and other seeds were 
got in in good time, and when the soil was in as friable and perfect 
a condition as it well could be to receive them. The grass, except 
during the cold period in May, continued to make slow but steady 
progress, and with a change to more genial weather in the last 
week in May a more rapid advance was made. At the end of the 
season our farm crops have seldom presented so early in the year 
a more promising appearance. 
The garden seeds were also sown, under equally propitious 
circumstances, and consequently germinated quickly, and with 
unusual regularity. The one drawback of this Spring was the 
continued cold weather, and the frequent frosty nights during 
the first fortnight in May, which did much damage to the abundant 
fruit-blossom, and blackened the potatoes and other tender plants, 
more particularly in low-lying localities. 
At Watford the blackthorn blossom was noted as unusually 
abundant. At Harefield the first swift was seen on the 18th of 
May, and at Odsey on the day following. 
All the spring flowering plants on the list blossomed later than 
usual. The coltsfoot was fourteen days late, the wood-anemone 
twelve days late, the blackthorn four days late, the garlic hedge- 
mustard three days late, the horse-chestnut one day late, the 
hawthorn eight days late, and the white ox-eye twelve days late. 
As had been the case in the three previous years, the spring 
migrants arrived somewhat behind their average dates. The 
swallow was one day late, the cuckoo two days late, the nightingale 
one day late, while th.e flycatcher (taking its average date for the 
nine years for which observations are available) was eleven days late. 
The wasp made its appearance ten days late, the small white 
butterfly one day late, and the orange-tip butterfly seventeen days 
late. Only two observers sent in dates for the meadow-brown 
butterfly—both extremely late ones. 
The Summer. 
Each of the three summer months was more or less cold, and 
taking the three together the mean temperature was lower than 
in any Summer for fourteen years. As affecting vegetation the 
most noteworthy feature was the fortnight of very cold weather 
in the middle of June—on one night at Eerkhamsted the exposed 
thermometer registered 2 degrees of frost. The total rainfall 
was slightly below the average ; for although June and August 
were both wet months, the fall of rain in July, on the other hand, 
