Signs of Winter




Photo Courtesy of M & D Hills Photography - New Years Day @ GSMNP

The early days of January have arrived.  Nighttime temperatures dip below freezing and mid-day temps rise to above freezing, often to the mid-forties, this fluctuation triggers the sap to begin flowing in maple trees.  Our Jefferson County neighbors, the Valentines who live over in Deep Springs, tap about 70 maple trees and drip by drip the sap accumulates and is collected. They gather and store the sap until they have enough to cook down in the evaporators to produce a sweet table syrup. It takes about 40 gallons of raw sap to make 1 gallon of pure maple syrup.   It is a wonderful and amazing product of nature; so when the maple saps begins flowing it's a sure sign of winter.

 

Some folks still use a drip tap w/ open bucket or jar, but today, most use a tap with an attached plastic hose connected to a covered 5 gallon bucket.



 Just down the road the other day I couldn’t help but noticed a farmer putting out large round bales of sweet summer hay for his livestock.  Another sure sign that January is here and we are in the grip of winter.  All forage grass has stopped growing and the animals require more supplemental feed.  I’m glad last summer was a good haying season.  Seems like most of our farmer neighbors have a good supply of hay on hand this winter.

Looking out our sunroom windows I watched the birds feeding yesterday at our feeders and suet block.  Just a few weeks ago I could fill both feeders and it would last almost a week before being emptied.  But, when the temperatures dip below freezing the bird’s appetites increase and the feeders can empty in two days or less.  


                    

Cardinals, house finches, gold finches, black-capped chickadees, juncos, titmouse, Downy woodpeckers and red bellied woodpeckers are the primary visitors eating the seeds and suet.  Their hearty appetites are another sure sign that winter has definitely arrived.

                   

 

Peering down at the goldfish in our “Mountain Stream” pond I notice they are hardly moving; another signal that winter has arrived.  They simply seem to hang suspended in the cold icy waters, moving just enough to pass water over their gills to sustain life.  On a sunny afternoon I sometimes see them “grazing” on the algae growing on the sides of the pond.  I never feed them in any season, they subsist on what the pond provides and some of them are 10 years old.  It is amazing how they slow their metabolism this time of year and maintain life until the water warms again in spring.  Even when a layer of ice coats the pond surface, locking them beneath; they patiently endure winter, awaiting spring.



Little movement during the winter months, but they survive and thrive.

The neighborhood red-tail hawks also seem more evident this season of the year.  There are no leaves on the trees to conceal them and they are so easy to spot as they soar overhead awaiting an opportunity to dive earthward.  I often see them perched on a tree snag along the perimeter of soybean and wheat fields that are part of a neighbor’s dairy farm operation.  They perch in absolute stillness, occasionally moving their head, watching for movement of mice in the empty stubble-covered fields.  Hunting is serious business for our hawks in the winter season.  It is all about survival.



And of course inside our house we have the “snowmen.” They have been out of their storage boxes since November.  They helped decorate the place for Christmas, but here in early January, most “Christmas stuff has been placed back in the storage boxes” awaiting Christmas 2015. 

 

An old favorite, hand-made 
by a retired teacher.

A cookie jar snowman.

 But not the snowmen, you’ll still find snowmen sitting on shelves, mantles, hearths, window sills, corner cupboards, the kitchen counter, bathroom counters, tables, plant stands and any other nooks or crannies that provide a place to sit or stand.

 



They sit with their happy faces, perpetually smiling at us until late February or early March.  The weather determines how long they visit.  Warm weather in February means an early departure to their off-season storage boxes; cold weather into March, assures their continued presence. 

 

These are some of our favorites.
 

I guess one of the reasons we keep them around so long is their happy demeanor.  That joyful face and talisman for snowy weather adds some joy to the short daylight hours and often sunless days of the winter months.



The "Mitford" Snowmen enjoy the warm glow of a candle.

Yes, winter has arrived and staked out a claim on East Tennessee; spring does not officially arrive until March 20, 2015.  So I’m going to take some lessons on how to survive winter from my friends in nature and the snowmen. 

This winter I think I’ll eat more nuts and grains like the birds, move less quickly like the fish, have maple syrup on my pancakes, and enjoy looking at the bare stubble fields like the hawks.  I’ll also try to keep a smile on my face and wait expectantly for a good snow! 

After all, winter is just another season and it too will soon pass.

Happy New Year all you ramblers.....enjoy the winter months!