Monday Forest photo: April 30, 2012

12:00pm 14C cloudy

Well, last week I mused that the leaves might be out by this week, but I didn't account for the week of cold and windy weather we've had since then. Today was the first mild, almost normal day in a while. I'd kind of been sucked into thinking we were having a warm spring, but April was ordinary, maybe a bit coolish, and if things are ahead of where they normally are, it's mainly because of the extraordinary heat we had in March to set things in motion. Perhaps the new normal is that all bets are off.

On my walk today, I spotted the first Trillium flower of the season. I get all Ontario-patriotic just thinking about it. After all, it's the provincial flower and we were all indoctrinated as children that we must never pick them, because they will never grow back and they are very special. I never have picked one and I don't know anyone who has, though I have heard that perhaps they aren't as delicate as all that.

After a brief hiatus for weather, there were lots of Trout Lily blooms today.