Garden Reports and Rejoicing – March 6
I am weather obsessed, but I’m not one of those people who only want sunny days. Just the opposite…I’m looking for regular clouds and (please, God) rain. As a gardener I wish for at least an inch of rain each week, delivered over a 24-hour period. And no, I don’t care if this precipitation comes overnight, on a workday, or over the weekend.
If those who live in the Northeast received an inch or more a week, none of us would have to water established plants. That would mean no extra sprinkling for our annuals, trees, perennials, shrubs, or lawns. Some vegetables might need a mid-week supplemental watering depending on temperatures, and containers need more water of course, but other landscaping would be supported and sustained.
Once you know that an inch or more will keep plants hydrated, the next step is to track what Mother Nature provides. This means having at least one rain gauge in the garden. The problem for rain-obsessed people like myself, however, comes in the late fall, winter, and spring. For four to six months a year most glass or plastic gauges will crack when temperatures go below freezing.
I have a glass rain gauge that I love but it comes indoors in the fall and doesn’t go out until all danger of frost is past. So this year I decided to search for a freeze-proof tool to measure the rain. Moisture-fixated people must know just how much rain has fallen, twelve months a year. A couple of months ago I found my ideal tool: The World’s Coolest Rain Gauge.
It is made in New York State, is attractive, accurate, and won’t crack during the winter. I love it.
I realize that it’s futile to fight the weather. In our gardens and our lives, atmospheric conditions are beyond our control. Sometimes circumstances are life-sustaining and other times they are not.
Nevertheless, it’s helpful to have assistance in measuring what we already have, so we know when extra efforts are necessary. Too bad there isn’t an equivalent of the World’s Coolest Rain Gauge for our workplace or emotional life, but I guess that gratitude is in order when even one of our needs is met.
I'm sure that in the summer this mostly rain gauge will disappear into the landscape. An added benefit is that you can read it from inside the house! I am thrilled with this tool, and no, they didn't send it to me for free or pay me to write this.
