MARCH 2023 www.weatherwithouttechnology.co.uk - Tree of the month 18th February to 17th March is the Ash For the second month running there are ...
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www.weatherwithouttechnology.co.uk
MARCH 2023
PREAMBLE.
Tree of the month 18th February to 17th March is the Ash
For the second month running there are two trees of the month, the
Alder is shown below.
Tree of the month 18th March to 14th April is the Alder
Welcome to the March 2023 website entry An explanatory note here of some importance concerning my definitions of the four seasons. Whilst the accepted definition of ‘spring’ runs from 1st March to the end of May, my seasons have variations, particularly in the case of the ‘winter’ season.’ I divide the ‘winter’ into ‘early winter’ around 15th November to around 15th January; and ‘late winter’ from around 15th January to the end of March. This is not an arbitrary decision, it is based on some forty years of observations, experience, and knowledge. March 2023 is a classic example of why I use such a definition. There is inevitably a ‘knock-on’ effect of such late cold in that the soil will be unable to support growth for some afterwards (to support growth the soil temperature needs to be 6C as a minimum; therefore, as such, spring will be later this year, gardeners/growers please note! I commence with the collated expert meteorological notes: MARCH 2023 – The first part of March is normally unsettled and stormy over western Europe particularly between Britain and the Baltic and is associated with north to northeast airstreams. On average, the stormiest parts of this period over Britain are the 1-2nd and 6-9th March, with Scotland and northern parts of Britain receiving stronger winds than districts further south. By contrast, 12-19th March is normally less stormy and produces markedly find conditions. In east Scotland and many other districts of Britain, it is the driest period of the year. Night frost, however, is likely despite quite warm day temperatures at times. In the Home Counties and SE England, it normally remains dry until 25th March, and the period 17-25th March the driest part of the year for the London area. There is a tradition the equinoctial gales begin on or near the 21st March. In fact, they do not normally affect Britain before 24-25th March, beginning first in the northern and western districts. From then until the end of the month the weather is normally very stormy, and there is a general lowering of temperature as the winds blow first from the SW or west and then veer to the NW or north. Sleet and snow over northern districts and over high ground and elsewhere are a
fairly regular feature of the last few days of March and produces storms two out of every three years. My records here since 1985 show that warm weather in March is extremely rare; on the other hand, cold weather with minus temperatures, sometimes all the day are quite common. Beware of the cold then. March 21st – St Benedict, quarter day, Day of Prediction and most importantly the wind day. Where the wind blows this day will be the predominant wind direction until the next such day, 24th June. I expect the wind this day to be from the south western segment, and, as such a warm damp wind; for those on the western side of the UK therefore a wet period ahead. Books: for those interested in the Global Warming debate, there is an interesting book just published on February 2nd by Ross Clark called, Not Zero – ISBN 9781800752429 RRP £20. There was an excellent article in the Daily Mail newspaper on 21st January entitled ‘The Inconvenient Truth,’ in which Mr Clark accepts that the planet is warming (as do I), but he dares challenge the consensus, he argues that the hysteria and doom-mongering that now surround any debate risk doing more harm than climate ever could. An interest point to be sure. Whilst not wishing to put ahead above the parapet too much, and not make any claims, I have encountered, to say the least, some latent ‘coolness/resistance’ in conversations with researchers from the BBC enquiring as to whether I might be willing to appear/participate on/in certain radio or TV programmes. Such conversations start quite well, but when the subject of global warming/climate change arises, especially
in respect of the UK, and I make the statement (based on provable facts and experience) that currently there is precious little, if any, at best, to prove such claims pertinent to the UK, and that such claims are currently overblown and somewhat gross hyperbole, the conversation rapidly comes to a close. However I now have good reason to suspect why this is so. In 2018 BBC personnel were invited to attend a course on reporting climate change, in which it was made quite clear that interviewees who were sceptical about man-made climate change were no longer to be regularly invited onto BBC news programmes (now we know why Prof David Bellamy disappeared from our view and sound). It went further to say that such sceptics were now branded as ‘deniers,’ an emotive term coined by climate change activists to try further their cause. News staff were told ‘you do not need to include downright deniers of climate change on BBC coverage’ there is much more along this line too. This directive helps explain why the BBC is so strong on climate change/global warming to the detriment of the facts of the matter, and why there is a distinct absence of ‘the other side’ of the argument; such reporting then becomes unbalanced and gives the appearance that the BBC is ‘pushing a certain agenda.’ (As if!) It does not help that the current BBC climate editor has a history of omitting vital facts and figures and has been found to be wanting in his reporting of what occurred and what he recorded. I am not a denier per se, however, and I have been doing this now for some fifty years, therefore have some valued knowledge and understanding of the subject. As such I cannot find, for there is none, any evidence to back up claims that the heat of the summer of 2022 will now be the norm from here on in, and that torrential rainstorms too will be the norm with increased flooding, and that wildfires too will plague us during the summer. Nature has been here for ever, such changes are part and parcel of life, and as anyone who has researched such history – as I have - our forefathers coped with such problems, and survived, we will do the same, we do not need the current hyperbole and furore been generated by interested parties, as part of their agenda, and lauded by the BBC to get in the way of common sense and sensible actions. And as for carbon-Zero by 2050 – forget it.
I see today (31st January) reports that the government wishes to try to recover some of the lost wildlife and environment and make green spaces and/or water within fifteen minutes of everyone. We had heard and read such fine words many times before, and nothing gets done. What is the point of being fifteen minutes from water if, be it sea or river, it is heavily polluted with sewerage and other such nasties? Before this hyperbole surely more should be done to stop the wanton destruction caused by HS2 to our beautiful landscape: plus developers too reducing such beauty in even more destruction of trees, the environment and open countryside. It is all, once again, hot air, to placate certain lobbies, but of course means nothing since nothing meaningful will be done. ‘’tis an ill wind!” As previously raised on this website, the environmental damage by pollution from wood burning stoves was always going to be a problem. The rising costs of heating exacerbated this and wood burning stoves have become not only a ‘fashion item’ but for many, an essential. The powers under the Environment Act 2021 have now been upgraded giving powers to local authorities to issue on the spot fines between £175 -£300. However, for persistent offenders this can now be dealt with by court proceedings with fines of up to £5000 and for persistent offenders and with an additional £2500 per day fine too. I have some knowledge of these burners, which are not cheap, with for the greater part, a long waiting list and installation period. The initial outlay, depending on the burner, is also not cheap, and may take a few years to recoup the cost and break even. Burning softer woods is false economy, however burning pine in particular, may well bring one into conflict with the above legislation. The real hardwoods, oak the best example, but there are others, are the most effective fuels, not cheap, but you get what you pay for!
I reproduce here, in full, an article from the Daily Telegraph of 28th January by Joe Shute, I think an enlightening and uplifting item on the weather. “Secret Happiness is looking forward to the next season, by Joe Shute. Jaak Panksepp, the neuroscientist, argued there are seven core emotions in the brain: rage, fear, lust, panic-grief, play and seeking. These are so fundamental, he argues, that they encompass all mammals. But it is ‘seeking’ which is deemed the key to human satisfaction. Looking forward is what keeps us happy. I find this the case with the passing of the seasons. It is the preparation for and anticipation of what lies ahead that makes weather watching our national past-time. As summer drags, we dream of the misty, melancholy of autumn, and when the fallen leaves turn to mulch, we long for the crisp winter frosts. And, right now, I am sure we all agree, spring cannot come soon enough. I’ve noticed this week that first sweet smell as the land begins to thaw. Across the country in the coming days there will be plenty of cloud and outbreaks of rain in the North West in particular, but things are warming up. Listen to the rising birdsong and watch the buds beginning to burst, spring is around the corner. Anticipation of the season is key to survival in nature. It is why the distorted patterns of climate change wreak such havoc among wildlife. Long before spring has officially arrived birds must begin to pair off, locate optimum sites to rear their young and begin to feather their nests. Some larger birds may even already be at it. Ravens, for example, will already have been constructing their sprawling nests over recent weeks and lining them with moss and sheep’s wool ahead of egg-laying next month. A favourite end-of-season poem of mine is ‘Thaw’ by Edward Thomas, which captures the moment when winter starts to release its grip. He imagines a group of rooks high up in the trees, surveying the melting snow: ‘and saw from the elm tops, delicate as flowers of grass/What we below could not see, Winter pass.”
I recently was having ‘clear-out’ of the voluminous paperwork acquired over many years of this project. I came across a comment from around June 2011 from a distinguished weather scientist who rather disdainfully regarded my subject as ‘tosh.’ His exact words being “No science dear boy, no scientific data to back it all up, no basic rules or formulae, in short, ‘hocus-pocus, you might as well use tea grains.” Looking back, some tea grains then! or maybe in the meantime I have developed ‘science,’ scientific data, several basic rules and formulae with an infinite knowledge of how nature and the moon phases pre- determine our UK weather. The reader can decide. I often make mention of the potential global catastrophe problems when a perigee/apogee, full moon and high tide occurred within a thirty-six- hour period. This manifestation has starkly been illustrated with the current earthquake catastrophe in Turkey & Iraq (7/2/2023); sadly, such catastrophes do occur and are the greater when the above three conditions are met. All such events occur when the moon is at its zenith, which shows just how powerful this celestial object is; our forefathers respected this (as do many gardeners), which is why I use the infallible moon phases. @David King Edenbridge February 2023
www.weatherwithouttechnology.co.uk
March 2023
NEW MOON = 21st @ 1723hrs = Snow/rain
1st QUARTER MOON = 29th @ 0332hrs = Snow & stormy
FULL MOON 7th @ 0720hrs = Stormy
LAST QUARTER MOON 15th @ 0208hrs = Snow & stormy
MARCH/VERNAL EQUINOX 20th @ 2124hrs
DoP = 21st St Benedict AND Quarter Day 21st
BST Starts 26th March 2022 @ 0100 hrs.
Highest spring tides 22nd to 25th
FULL MOON FOR THE MONTH IS KNOWN FULL WORM MOON OR SAP MOON
OR SUGARING MOON OR CROW MOON OR STORM MOON.
Perigee 19th @ 1517 hrs: Apogee 3rd @ 1802hrs + 31st @ 1119hrs
MET OFFICE NOTES: None. BUCHAN NOTES: None.
1st St David Ever on St David's day, put oats and barley in clay.
Patron Saint of Wales. Daffodil day, and became the Welsh
symbol in the Investiture of 1911 and in official publications since
that time.
Daffodil day
2nd St Chad Every goose lays before St Chad, whether good goose or bad [if
your goose has not laid by this day start fattening for the pot for she is not a
good layer] Sow peas today.
3rd St Winneral The holy day of the saint who controls tides and weather. If
stormy today bad winds to follow, but quiet end to the end of the month.
Apogee @ 1802hrs
5th 2nd in Lent
12th- 15th Cheltenham Races 12th to 15th
12th 3rd in Lent
16th St Piran Cornish festival Patron Saint of Cornwall.
17th St Patrick Around this time Cheltenham Gold Cup race meeting and some
freakish weather.19th St Joseph of Nazareth A fertile year if clear and dry.
4 in Lent – Simnel Sunday- Mothering Sunday
th
Vernal Equinox 2124hrs
Perigee @ 1517hrs
21st St Benedict DoP. Quarter Day. As the wind today it will stay for three
months. A fertile year if not freezing today. See below for frost
precautions.
25th Lady Day Virgin Mary Day, The day the cardamine flower blooms.
26th 5th Sunday in Lent. BST Starts
31st Apogee @1119hrs
Full moon this month is known as the Full Sap moon also known as
Worm moon, sugaring moon, crow moon, storm moon, sap moon, lentern
moon or crust moon.
Tree of the month up to 17th is the Ash, thereafter is the Alder.
General Notes and Comments.
The word ‘March’ comes from the Roman ‘Martius,’ this was originally the first month
of the Roman calendar and was named of Mars, the god of war.
March was the beginning of our calendar year, which was changed to the ‘New
Style’ or ‘Gregorian calendar’ in 1752 and only since then has the year began
with January 1st.
The Four wind days, Quarter Days, are among the most reliable in the year and give
the prevailing wind until the next Quarter Day.
The month of renewal - The month of winds and new life. March - many weathers.
If the winds for Candlemass (2nd February) and St Benedict (21st) are contradictory,
then St Benedict takes preference.
10th - If it does not freeze, a fertile year may be expected; mists or hoar frosts
indicate a plentiful year, but not without some diseases.
21st, St Benedict. This Quarter Day will give you the wind up to 24th June (St John)
which is just 95 days later. St Benedict will take precedence over Candlemass
should the winds directions be contradictory.
St Benedict - sow thy peas or keep them in the nick.March is traditionally a boisterous month throughout the temperate zones of the
northern hemisphere. >>>>>>>
The reason is that the polar regions are at their coldest after nearly six months of
night, while the equatorial regions are at their hottest because the sun is
overhead.
The strength of the atmospheric circulation depends primarily on the difference of
temperature between the equator and poles; hence it is most vigorous when
the contrasts of hot and cold are greatest in March.
When there has been no particular storm about the time of the spring equinox, if a
storm arise from the east on or before that day, or, if a storm from any point of
the compass arise a week after the equinox, then, in either of these cases, the
succeeding summer is generally dry (4/5). But if a storm arise from the SW
or WSW or a frost before the spring equinox, the summer is generally wet.
(5/6).
There are generally some warm days at the end of March or the beginning of April,
which will bring the Blackthorn into bloom, and, which are followed by a cold
period called the Blackthorn Winter (11-14th April).Fogs in March - frosts in
May. [This is quite accurate, in London there are on average four foggy
mornings in March and four nights average ground frost in may]
Fog in March - Thunder in July. [doubtful].
As much fog in March, so much rain in summer.
As it rains in March so in June. [doubtful]
A wet March makes a sad harvest.
March damp and warm does the farmer much harm.
When March has April weather, April will have March weather.
Dry March, wet April, dry May and wet June are generally said to bring everything in
tune.
A windy March and a rainy April makes a beautiful May.
A showery March and a showery May portend a wholesome summer - if there be a
showery April between.
Dust in March brings grass and foliage.
A peck of March dust to be sold, is worth a King's ransom.
March dust on apple leaf, brings all kinds of fruit to grief.
The March sun rises but dissolves not. March sun lets snow stand on a stone.
If you’ve March in January the January will appear in MarchAfter a frosty winter there will be a good fruit harvest.
If March winds start early it will be a dry Easter.
A dry lent spells a fertile year.
A windy/dry March fortells a dry May.
March flowers make no summer bowers.
March dry - good rye.
A dry cold March never begs its bread.[a good grain harvest implies a dry July and
August]
March snow hurts the seeds.
Snow in March is bad for fruit and grape vines.
Moles are a good guide for a fortnight or so, it is a sure sign of warmer weather when
they start to become active - it may only be a short warm period.
Field mice however, when scurrying around are a prelude to bad weather. They are
laying in stocks of food.
Better bitten by a snake than feel the sun in March.
March, month of many weathers, wildly comes in hail and snow and threatening
floods and burns.
A peck of March dust and a shower in May makes the corn green and meadows all
gay.
The month of winds and new life.
After a frosty winter there will be a good pea harvest.
For the elderly - February search, March try - April says weather you live or die.
Average central England temperature is 5.7C.
Broadly speaking, significant plant growth commences at 6C or above.
Winter = -6C. Summer = +6C.
March tends to be the driest month of the year - but subject to cold snaps and frost.
The third week of March is often the driest of the whole year.
A dry March and a wet may, fill barns and bays with corn and hay.
As it rains in March, so it rains in June.
It is also said that March borrows its last week from April, which indicates the tail of
the month is often more spring like than the rest of it.The last three days are called ’borrowing days’ for if they are unusually stormy,
March is said to have borrowed them from April. Three days of wind and
rain is more the norm.
Also - one day rain. one day snow and the other, the worst day they ever knew.
The third week of the month (around the 17th St Patrick’s day) is fronted by
Cheltenham Gold Cup race meeting. This period will certainly produce a
combination of most variable weather, from rain/snow/sleet and winds to hot
dry and sunny.
March is usually a very varied month and a sensible traveller will be prepared for
anything.
If March comes in like a lion it will go out like a lamb (and vice-versa).
[dependable, but it only applies to the first and last two or three days of the month]
If March comes in all stormy and black, she carries winter away on her back.
As in September, so next March - sometimes. [check previous September readings]
As in October wet, March dry:- yes if October wet is above average then March
below average. October cold, March (warm) cold - is more likely cold from
local records.
October warm, March cold(er than average) - from local records.
If the last 18 days of February are wet and the first 10 days of March be for the most
part rainy, then the spring and summer quarters are likely to be wet too, and a
drought is unknown but that it entered that season. [this is very true - so
watch the drought situation]
AND
If the rainfall from the above dates is less than 100mms then the drought possibility
is far higher. This is a refined local calculation.
Northerly winds over northern Europe reach their highest frequency around 15th
June. But are rare after 20th June. Meanwhile SW winds blow
comparatively infrequently from late March until 10th June, but are very much
more common during the rest of June.>>>>>>
From the same research, taking England & Wales as a whole, the driest months of
the year are:- March, April & May, and occasionally February and June.
These months are also the months when long drags of unsettled westerly
winds are unlikely to occur. Monthly rainfall is between 2.3/2.6 ins
(58/66mms) for each month from February to June.
From July onwards 3.2/3.8ins (81/96mms).
A dry Lent spells a fertile year.
Oranges & Lemons: In the days when the river Thames wider, barges carrying
oranges and lemons landed just below the churchyard of St Clements Dane
Church (which is roughly midway between the current Waterloo and
Blackfriars bridges). On the last day of March, local primary school children
gathered at the church to attend a service, during which they recite thefamous nursery rhyme and play the tune on hand-bells. At the end of the
service each are presented with an orange and a lemon. Hence the rhyme
‘Oranges and lemons say the bells of St Clements.’
FULL MOON THIS MONTH IS KNOWN AS THE SAP MOON, or worm moon,
sugaring moon, crow moon, storm moon.
The tree of the month up to the 17th is the ASH. Thereafter the Alder.
MONTHLY AVERAGES FOR EDENBRIDGE (USING 1991-2020 FIGURES)
Mean Max: 12.5C Mean Min: 3C Mean Avg: 7.7C
Rainfall: 56.4mm Sunshine: 139.1hrs (day = 4.48hrs)
Whilst I appreciate the above are local figures, it will be an indication of what the
averages are, and, of course there will be local variations. Such variations
can be found by trawling the various weather websites, or by using the superb
data found in the Climatologists Observers Link website.
The following figures are for the average temperature at 12 noon and again at 4pm,
taken at the beginning and again at the end of the month.
1st 7.59C 7.8C
31st 11.89 12.81C
@David King Edenbridge February 2023DATE day moon weather DoP Saint/holy other day Perigee Equinox Met Office Buchan Super- Highest
March day Apogee Eclipse moon tides
01/03/2023 w St David
02/03/2023 th St Winneral
03/03/2023 f apogee
04/03/2023 sa 1802hrs
05/03/2023 su 2nd in Lent
06/03/2023 m
07/03/2023 tu Full snow/rain FULL WORM MOON
08/03/2023 w 1240hrs
09/03/2023 th
10/03/2023 f
11/03/2023 sa
12/03/2023 su 3rd in Lent
13/03/2023 m
14/03/2023 tu
15/03/2023 w Last Q snow & stormy
16/03/2023 th 0208hrs if cold enough St Piran
17/03/2023 f else rain St Patrick
18/03/2023 sa
19/03/2023 su 4th in Lent + Simnel Sunday/ mothering perigee
20/03/2023 m St Joseph Sunday 1517hrs vernal equinox
21/03/2023 tu New fair YES St Benedict Quarter/ Wind Day
22/03/2023 w 1723hrs high tides
23/03/2023 th 22nd
24/03/2023 f to
25/03/2023 sa Annunciation BVM 25th
26/03/2023 su BST STARTS 5th in Lent
27/03/2023 m
28/03/2023 tu
29/03/2023 w 1st Q snow & stormy
30/03/2023 th 0332hrs if cold enough
31/03/2023 f else rain apogee
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