Jonathan’s Vineyard Blog

15th November 2022

“If the ice on St.Martin’s Day will bear a duck, there will be none that will bear a goose all winter”.

St.Martin’s Day is 11th November.

The literal translation of this proverb, etched into rural folklore (cue ‘The Archers’ theme music) is that a freezing cold November will be the precursor to a mild, wet winter.

November 11th 2022 was a mild day here in Godstone and the ducks on our lake were swimming and floating rather than practising their ice skating skills.

I imagine that many of you will have heard at least a few of the sayings below however what I found interesting was that in a recent poll by the Met Office a good percentage of respondents believe them to be true, plus they make a pleasant distraction from the Accuweather app on my mobile, so here we go in no particular order :

Red Sky at night, shepherd’s delight 

83% of Brits believe this to be true.Originally intended to help a shepherd plan the day ahead there is some truth in it - high pressure tends to bring good weather; high pressure traps dust and dirt in the air, which scatters the blue light, only leaving the red light remaining.

It is too cold to snow

62% of Brits believe this to be true however it is unlikely to be the case since moisture is a more important factor than temperature in the development of snow. Oymyakon in Russia is the coldest inhabited place on earth and they have annual snowfall of about 25 feet.

Cows lie down when it is about to rain

I have a personal interest in this one; a herd of cows graze the fields below our vineyard and after many years of careful research it is my opinion that they sit down because they are tired. I may write a thesis one day on this subject !

Pine cones open up when good weather is coming

This one is absolutely true - pine cones dry out during dry weather and they take on an open appearance, whilst in wet weather they curl up and close.

Rain before seven, fine by eleven

32% of Brits are convinced that this is accurate and, according to Met Office data, they are probably correct because 4 hours is usually enough time for rain fronts to pass. However a lack of wind will often lead to longer periods of rain in which case it’s not accurate.

In mid November I planted a new laurel hedge (photo attached above) - there was a glorious red sky the night before; the pine cones were fully open; it hadn’t rained by 7am, and the cows were all standing to attention.

Feel free to call me superstitious but my rural folklore checklist is far less stressful at the present time than looking at the electricity Smart Meter !

We are always delighted to see you at our shop, which is open every weekend between 10.30am-4.30pm; between now and Christmas we are serving complimentary mulled wine and mince pies for members of our mailing list (if you aren’t already subscribed and would like to be then just provide your details in “Stay In The Know” at the bottom of this page) plus there is a generous discount on a case of six bottles of our Sparkling Wine (£138 discounted to £126), available to all our members.

Kind Regards

Jonathan

jcdeeley@godstonevineyards.com