Nature & Science
By LYNNE IRONS
Nothing can revive a guy
Quite like a piece of rhubarb pie
Serve it up
Nice and hot
maybe things
aren’t as bad as you thought
— Garrison Keiler
Those in the know hear this little song every week on the Prairie Home Companion (Saturday at 6 p.m. or Sunday at 1 p.m.) on National Public Radio.
It seemed like a harmless sort: a symbol of purity and hope, a cancer crusader and fundraiser, and beautiful harbinger of spring; but, if the truth be told, the daffodil has a dark and sinister side.
Many herbalists of yore thought the world of the daffodil, which is in the plant genus Narcissus and is known to some by that name. The daffodil’s healing powers were widely admired and recommended. One of this flower’s proponents, a healer named Culpepper, gave his opinion:
Mid-April this year looks even less like spring than it usually does on the Vineyard. Although conditions were looking up a bit during the middle of this week, the last few weeks have averaged cloudy and cool. Accordingly, there appears to have been little activity among Island birders, and the migration appears to be running slightly behind schedule. But all this is poised to change.
Temperature: Precip.
Day Max. Min. Inches.
Fº Fº
March 28 51 41 Trace
March 29 45 32 .04
March 30 45 27 .00
March 31 44 25 .00
April 1 49 40 .05
April 2 54 41 .23
April 3 50 28 .04
Water temperature in Edgartown harbor: 45º F.
A thin crescent moon on Tuesday night appears close to the star cluster Pleiades in the zodiacal constellation Taurus. The two appear in the southwestern sky after sunset. The best view is through a pair of binoculars. With glasses the moon appears to graze right by the star cluster.
Green home building is all the rage right now, but humans are Johnny-come-latelys to ecological building. Our “nests” are too often made from new materials that come from far and wide. Not so in the avian world.
Almanac
A comprehensive guide to weather and tides on the Island.
Vineyard Gardener
I guess this past week weather-wise is called a January thaw. We did not really experience it the last several years as December was unseasonably warm.
Farm & Field
Beige and brown and tan and black, with horns spiraled or semicircular or in undulating waves, a legion of goats marched up the hill toward us, bleating in anticipation of fresh grass and leaves.