At some point during the fall we were told "December would be a real winter". We had snow, snow that actually stayed on the ground for a couple of weeks granting us that fabled "white Christmas" which is actually fairly rare around here. And then we were told it is basically over, that the rest of the winter will be warmer than average leading into a long cool spring.
Has winter come and gone? Certainly the beginning of the year has been interesting enough. 2007 ended with 9 inches of snow. 2008 began with another 7 inches of snow. Then we had a little cold front and on Thursday the temperatures dropped below zero. I suppose if this is all there is to winter we have still met our average minimum temperature requirements for zone 6 (0 to -10) and so we could let winter rest peacefully. I can’t say that I would mind if the rest of the winter were mild.
The ground was still frozen solid and covered in snow Saturday morning. By this afternoon large swaths of brown grass and semi-frozen mud have appeared. Walking to the compost bin requires crossing a combination of hard slippery ice, slush, and wet marshy semi-frozen sodden ground. Perhaps the muddy season is upon us. Only time will tell.