{"id":3958,"date":"2014-04-01T01:00:09","date_gmt":"2014-04-01T05:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.allandouglas.com\/blog\/?p=3958"},"modified":"2025-04-21T01:56:40","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T05:56:40","slug":"signs-of-spring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/signs-of-spring\/","title":{"rendered":"Signs of Spring"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spring time here means rain.\u00a0 Lots and lots of rain.\u00a0 Our mountain retreat will seem more like Seattle for a month or so from late February through most of March.\u00a0 The ground will be soggy, the rivers run full, and we make good use of umbrellas and wide brimmed hats (like my fedora).\u00a0 Not only does it rain often, but some will be very heavy rainfalls, which can lead to the washing out of driveways and roads.\u00a0 Crusher-run gravel comes at a premium price at this time of year as residents scramble to repair damage to their drives and access roads.\u00a0\u00a0This year with all the budgets cut, including road maintenance, some of our normally top-notch roads are deteriorating rapidly.\u00a0 One that we normally use as a short-cut into town has become all but impassible because of the pot holes.<\/p>\n

Spring Colors<\/h2>\n

\"Trees<\/a>On the brighter side; we also enjoy the brilliant colors of spring; all the fruit trees burst into bloom practically overnight, the pink and white of Dogwood trees and the lavender of Redbud trees, yellow of Forsythia and bright red of Quince. \u00a0The irises and day lilies have already put up their spiky green leaves and will soon flower into purple, orange and red blossoms.\u00a0 Pansies are already putting on a show, and a multitude of ground covers are popping open in purple, pink, yellow, and white flowers.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

Spring Crops<\/h2>\n

It has been cold here this spring, some of the rain has been delivered as snow.\u00a0 Even the last few days of March brought a surprise day-long snow that was especially odd:<\/p>\n