8:13 AM  [22 Oct 2008 | Wednesday]

Flurries

It's 30 F outside right now and we're having mild flurries. I was up at 6:00 AM and the flurries were more intense. Yesterday we had pellet sized hail in the afternoon. I shudder when I think of places that have baseball sized hail. Winter while not technically here is starting. They say it will be a cold one, they being the farmer's almanac but what is their track record? They say the more black hairs a wooly worm has the colder the winter will be. They also say if the wooly worm is wearing a wool cap in October, look out. Later I will search for wooly worms and give a report. Right now it's probably too cold for them.

It's supposed to rain this weekend, when will I get that garden tilled? I also have to plant garlic. I have shallots out there already I'll cover with mulch and harvest next summer. I hope the tiller starts.

By the way, I am fond of winter weather, not a big fan of shoveling.

Here's a link to an exweatherman's take on predicting the coming winter ala wooly worm.

http://www.semissourian.com/article/20081014/BLOGS0149/810149997/-1/opinion

More wooly worm info at this site from "OutdoorWoman ".

http://www.ehow.com/how_2143194_predict-winter-wooly-worms.html