Like many of you, we too have been basking in the unusual warmth Mother Nature has been delivering lately, but not without some trepidation. As much as we hate heating bills, bone-chilling cold and darkness, we’re pinching ourselves far too often lately reminding ourselves it’s only March.
There’s simply something very eerie about fast-forwarding straight through spring. What’s worse is the unknown. Will we get a flash freeze and go back to seasonal temperatures? Will trees, fooled into thinking it’s time to let their buds swell, be severely impacted if cold weather once again hits?
Everything that has started to grow prematurely could die off if Old Man Winter returns with furious vengeance. That could be very bad news for our lovely gardens, but what about our food? Should farmers sow their seeds sooner? Has maple syrup season really come and gone? Strawberries and other perennials have already started coming out of the ground; does that mean their lifespan will be shorter or will they simply bloom and/or produce fruit longer? Might they disappear at the first sight of frost, not to be seen again until next year?
Walk into any café or restaurant and you’ll find they’re still on their cold-weather menu, that’s because the ability to adjust to unseasonable temperatures has been non-existent. We’ve all been a little too shocked and dumbfounded to do what comes naturally at the end of April.
And if you think we’re confused, think of our wildlife. The Ministry of Natural Resources is already telling us to watch for wildlife on the road. That warning usually starts in April, but given how fast the mercury has been rising, wildlife is on the move everywhere — especially deer and moose. Right now it’s worse than ever as they leave their wintering grounds for areas where they’ll spend their summer. So watch the roads carefully, especially (but not exclusively) bush roads.
Even the sounds in the woods have changed. Songbirds are back, robins and other birds that we don’t usually hear until April, have already started chirping their tunes. The future will be important because if cold weather suddenly hits, it could be devastating for wildlife. And if warm weather stays, we’ll have to start thinking outside of the box and paying greater heed to warnings of climate change.
Either way, we’re fortunate to be living in Muskoka — it’s a great place to stay in tune with our natural environment, and for that very reason we should be giving it our utmost attention.
T.d.V.