sternest shape?

given what has come before in terms of weather and what is forecast to follow, de quincey's "...winter, in his sternest shape..." may be what we have going on her at the moment...and it seems to be a fleeting one...it was, allegedly, one degree below zero ( fahrenheit ) just before dawn this morning...it has warmed since and i am told will be in the mid forties by a week from tomorrow...winter is feeble so far this year...

one plus is the winter wheat and rye do finally have enough snow to insulate them from the cold...perhaps too little too late...spring will tell...

the ramps are slumbering for another month and a half or so...they will be up and running alongside the winter grains by early april...beyond that there isn't much to see out there...

the basement potato season is booming along...and there are plans for squash, spuds, beans, maize, teocintli in the spring to go along with the asparagus and strawberries that are wintering over out under all that snow...we will be on the lookout for crocuses and daffodils as soon as the weather breaks...they may be earlier this year.