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The weather-predicting business is a tough one. How do you know if the winter will be exceptionally snowy? Is it going to be a cold, long winter? According to folklore, all you need to do is look at the squirrels! Or measure the thickness of onion skins! Let鈥檚 take a look at signs of a bad winter according to weather lore passed down through the ages.
Winter is coming! How do we know what the conditions will be? First of all, check out the new 蜜桃恋人 winter forecast, released each year around Labor Day.
What Do the Squirrels Know About Winter?
The squirrels offer up some impressive rodent wisdom.
Squirrels gathering nuts in a flurry, Will cause snow to gather in a hurry.
That makes sense. If winter is going to be cold, you better store up more food! In addition, a tough winter is ahead if squirrels鈥 tails are very bushy. Even squirrel nesting patterns tell us how cold a winter will be. Nests higher in trees suggest a colder, snowier winter; nests located lower in trees suggest a milder winter.
The Birds and the Bees
In this case, knowing the birds and the bees is about closer observation of nature. As with squirrels, when birds migrate early or bees build their nests high in the trees, the winter is going to be awful. The old saying goes:
See how high the hornets nest, 鈥榯will tell how high the snow will rest.
How about the woolly worms? Ever seen those fuzzy-wuzzy worms cross the road in autumn? The furry bands of brown and rust on a woolly caterpillar will tell you if the upcoming winter will be cold.
鈥淎re your chrysanthemums really pretty? Get out the mittens.鈥 Even the flowers know! Source: Wikimedia
Food Folklore: Onion, Apple, and Corn
Folklore claims that thicker onion skins can signal a cold and snowy winter.
Onion鈥檚 skin very thin, Mild winter coming in; Onion鈥檚 skin thick and tough, Coming winter cold and rough. 鈥揋补谤诲别苍别谤鈥檚&苍产蝉辫;搁丑测尘别
Other plants and trees also give cues about rain and cold weather if you observe closely.
Like onions, thick skins on apples signal a bad winter.
And thicker-than-normal corn husks indicate a harsh winter, too.
Flowers in bloom late in autumn indicate a lousy winter.
When leaves drop early, autumn and winter will be mild, but if they fall late, winter will be severe.
蜜桃恋人 Lore and Science
Some of these are based on old-fashioned observation. But some go back to science.
Interestingly, weather folklore warning of a harsh winter is based on La Ni帽a and El Nino, which are natural climate phenomena related to the temperatures of the oceans. So, it鈥檚 a little bit of art and science!
La Ni帽a conditions tend to be dry in summer and cold in winter. If birds leave early, the leaves fall quickly, onions and apples are tough, and caterpillars are short, it may be due to the La Ni帽a drought. A miserable La Ni帽a winter will follow.
El Ni帽o conditions typically result in wetter-than-average conditions from southern California to the Gulf Coast and drier-than-average conditions in the Pacific Northwest.
Other folklore indicates that you shouldn鈥檛 let your guard down. Lots of berries, nuts, and flowers may be the sign of a lovely warm November. However, weather-wise, winter will probably be difficult.
With an academic background in international business, James is a writer, editor and researcher for Browning Media LLC, helping to present accurate climatological projections. Read More from James J. Garriss
Correction: Iridescent purple sheen grackle bird highlights the orange maple leaves; the black grackle's yellow eyes enhance the autumn's yellow beech tree leaves...
So do the leaves fall early or late for a harsh winter?
First it was stated they fall late for a harsh winter. Then, when lumped in with tough onion skins and early bird migration (harsh winter), it says they fall early.
I object to your categorizing a 鈥渂ad鈥 winter to have ice and lots of snow. To me, that鈥檚 a 鈥済ood鈥 winter! Kills bugs and helps the garden! A bad winter is warm, foggy and rainy. Let鈥檚 go squirrels!!
I concur with K. Ridihalgh鈥檚 statement - my part of Downeast (Maine) needs cold and snow and ice to be 鈥渘ormal鈥. We had a terrible heavy tick season this year for lack to sufficient tick-killing cold last winter.
I had a cat who lived to be 21. 3 times in her life, her fur went from typical short hair to thick as chinchilla. Soft, and lush. We live in the middle of Texas where we get a few freezes and rarely a dusting of snow. All 3 of the chinchilla fur years, we got full on ice and snow for days. And a non-typical cold winter. Mother Nature provided! (And gave a warning?)