high taxes & freezing rain

john z4vt

I love the change of seasons. The reawakening of plants and trees after a hard, cold winter is magical.

Another vote here for changing of the seasons. Also, although I hate the cold and dark of winter (or at least how long winter lasts), I appreciate that it kills pests and diseases, or at least inhibits both. I also love living in the mountains but being only a few hours from the ocean (although I guess the same could be said of much of the southeast). For gardening, each spring is a new beginning. I imagine that in the southwest seeing cacti and other desert plants suddenly bloom after the monsoons might be the same effect. Months of dormancy followed by a reawakening is indeed magical, as ctgardenguy said.

john, you crack me up! Yes, and don't forget the multiple power outages and school lasting till nearly the end of June.

I love winter here. I love the short, dark days because the warmth of a fire and lights through a window are cozy. Don't know if the soft warm light of incandescent bulbs through a window will be a thing of the past as we switch to truer white LED bulbs, etc.

My favorite thing about winter, though, is gardening. What, you say?! I feel sure that for me the long vacation from gardening in the winter makes it so easy to love gardening in the summer. Just when my back is really hurting and I'm thinking, "Am I ever going to finish all the chores?" winter comes along and gives me a break. Everything settles down for a long winter nap, and before long I'm ready to garden again. I have plenty of time to plan, dream, imagine, and change my mind several times before the next gardening season begins.

Compare that with the South, where the growing season is 6-9 months, and as soon as summer plants die you're "supposed to" plant the pansies to bloom all winter, and that's not just Florida. That's all the way to northern Georgia/Alabama, and maybe even farther. If you don't, it's just ugly and brown all winter. Up here, the snow and even the ice make for beautiful days all winter.

After winter, hands down my second favorite thing is herbaceous peonies, which is probably why I planted about 15 this fall.

HISTORY!!! I love the old houses and historic sites, despite the cold and high taxes. Connecticut has some of the most beautiful old town centers.

As others have said having the change of seasons is a must. Autumn being my favorite, (believe it or not I actually like raking leaves)with Winter being a close second. The miles and miles of the best coastline there is with ocean water temp never getting above the low 60's where I live(coastal Maine). Being able to harvest the freshness of what the ocean has to offer and having it on your plate for dinner that same night. Even though we have a shorter growing season then other areas of the country, I still like to push the limits and see how well "southern" plants grow. Up until this morning's frost my Elephant Ears were still doing very well in their pots. Time to cut them down and dump the dirt. I had left my dinner plate dahlias in their pots also. I usually have them dug and bagged by now. But the honey and bumble bees were still using them for a place to rest and sleep and I didn't have the heart to take away their only home. (I know, I'm just an old softy haha). I like growing a lot of our food in the veggie garden and then storing and canning them to open/use during the colder months long after the garden has been put to bed. I love living here in the Northeast. Have visited many different areas of the country and over seas. Would never want to be anywhere else.

The *rest* aspect of winter that Deanna mentioned is a big plus for life in the northeast. The grass usually stops growing just about the same time that we are growing weary of mowing it, and by the time spring arrives, we are rejuvenated and ready to tackle the gardens and lawns anew.

I didn't think of the fresh (sea)food NancyLouise, but access to fresh caught fish and shellfish (even here in land-locked but nearby Vermont) is a big check in the plus column. Also New England and neighboring NY state are rich with organic farms that grow humanely treated, pasture raised animals and organic produce, so one can live off the land, healthfully, for the most part. Our area is pesticide-free by comparison to large swaths of the southern and midwestern states.

With the delayed winter this year, I, too, left a few pots out that had become home to bees who were clinging to life like the flowers in those pots. Even now I've put off cleaning out the vegie patch because it still contains green plants that the deer have been browsing on. A hard freeze is predicted for tomorrow, so I suppose the end is coming.

It is clear what the NEW ENGLAND states refer to geographically, but how would you define "The NORTHEAST". I live in NJ which sometimes gets lumped with the Northeast and sometimes the MidAtlantic (though obviously not a New England state). Same thing with Pa., and Maryland; and although Virginia is considered a southern state, northern Virginia is not that different from my own neck of the woods in terms of gardening. Curious that several people mentioned the change in "seasons", but Miami, Los Angeles, Seattle, and Honolulu also have "seasons" (as characterized by changes in..., wind direction, rainfall, humidity, storms, sun intensity etc..). I realize the posters though mean, relatively snowy winters. Winters for me can be highly erratic with periods of relative warmth alternating with cold and bitter cold; so usually not persistently frozen over for weeks on end. But getting back to the original posting, I think I like best the large range of different plant species that can be grown in the general region. In the more northerly regions of the "Northeast" there is persistent and reliable snow cover that really expands the range of possibilities. My father was a true Yankee but northern Vt., and would say that they get away with planting things that might be considered too tender for the zone, due to that snow cover. Further south, I am in Zone 7 and you can plant species that are more northern and more southern; there is a real convergence of plants and so LOTS of possibilities. Relatively high year round rainfall and acid soils enable me to grow some of favorite plants, including hollies, magnolias, camellias, and rhododendrons. The Midwest has cold and snow but you don't have the same potential for such luxuriant growth.

I would say that NJ is a borderline Northeastern state (more NE than Mid Atlantic), whereas I would never consider PA, Maryland, or VA to be part of the Northeast. Specifically I would define the Northeast as being all the New England states, eastern NY state, and most often NJ too. The weather gods don't necessarily respect state lines. For that matter climate change is eroding traditional weather patterns, but it's a long process. There have been some winters in recent history here in northern New England with very unreliable snow cover.

Respective of nothing, I will never understand why Texas is considered a Southern state. In my book, if you have a longhorn steer as your state logo and a desert landscape covering a good percentage of your acreage, you are a Southwestern state.

"Respective of nothing, I will never understand why Texas is considered a Southern state."

I'm pretty sure it's only southern because it was a Confederate state. But for Kansas, which was Union, the rest of the west, including Oklahoma, didn't attain statehood until after the Civil War with the exception of states on the west coast. And, to be honest, I don't think Texas should honestly be called anything other than "Texas." They've got state pride a mile high, were the only state that was a sovereign country, and still can be fiercely independent. That means we have the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, New England, MidWest, Northwest, Southwest, West...and Texas, all by itself!

Your Civil War explanation makes the most sense, Deanna.

I love New England because I love all four seasons, even winter which many older folks like myself don't want. All of the seasons come & go and each has a quality I appreciate ... Autumn colors, the crisp air and that smell of burning & crunchy leaves ... Winter's ice and snow that make trees glisten against dark skies and give clear views through the woods that were hidden by leaves ... Spring, warming, fragrant earth and emerging bulbs & perennials (Oh, I forgot about that one!) ... Summer sun and the gardens exploding with color.

I'm not a beach person and don't participate in winter sports, so I look at all the seasons as a gardener. Deanna is right! I like the rest from gardening in the winter, plus there are all the holiday activities from Thanksgiving to New Year's that take up my time. And when mid-January arrives, I start to plan for next season in the gardens. I look at my to-do list from the following year & pour over catalogues and online sites.

This was a timely thread to me because yesterday I met a gardener who moved back to Connecticut from Florida. He talked about the fruit he could grow in his own yard and the way seasons change down south. Still, he was coming back to New England even though he's not a fan of winter. He missed the four seasons, too.

Everyone brings up very good points!

I love the four distinct seasons up here, even though sometimes I get envious that some state don’t have to shovel feet of snow out of their driveways, I personally can’t imagine the holidays without chilly air and snow. I travelled a lot as a child and lived in many different states, but lived here the majority of my life. So to me having a cold snowy winter really just says “home”.

Deanna does bring up a great point about the testing aspect, I have several small/modest garden spaces across my property and I find those hard to keep up with. I can imagine especially with very large or complicated gardens this can get overwhelming quickly.

ive really enjoyed reading everyone’s responses and hope others will participate, it takes away some of the melancholy that can sometimes take hold this time of year :)

I agree with my3fatcats...I like the sense of history.

As far as plant related things, I like that if you leave lands unattended trees sprout up on their own and you get forest...not highly combustible scrub, not sand with a few cactuses, real forest.

As one who is re-foresting a portion of my own land, with help from Mother Nature, your comment speaks to me, edlincoln.

Great thread. I enjoyed everyone's responses, it really reminded me of things I had not thought of but are very true. I'd have to say, as so many have said, the change of seasons is the #1 reason I appreciate New England. I did live in Florida for almost a year once and I found the constant barely perceptible change from hot to hotter and back again, oppressive. [g] Although I did love the crashing downpours there. With climate change now, the seasons are not as sharp as they were when I was growing up here. April Showers did bring May Flowers and March would come in like a Liion and out like a Lamb. We did get spring rains and fall rains. And not showers all the time, but real rain, for 2 or 3 days at a time. Fall brought clear, crisp air and consistent fall color. And winter was winter in capital letters and we seemed to have a constant supply of sledding weather and days off from school.

Another aspect of living in Florida made me appreciate New England more, the traffic patterns. In Florida, no matter where you wanted to go, you had to go down the main Route 1. lights at every intersection. There were no ways to take an alternate route or a short cut. and the topography was just so flat. I enjoy the fact. that I can probably find 5 ways to go anywhere I have to go. And I like the crazy street patterns that sometimes seem to have no rhyme or reason. And the rotaries that they don't have in other parts of the country. I like the hills and the twists and turns.

I love the architecture, the history as Ed and 3FatCats pointed out. Love the access to the ocean. I'd find it very hard to not live near the ocean, even though I don't get there as often as I'd like.

In the garden, as has been said, I look forward to a winter rest, too. I don't think I would enjoy gardening as much if I could not get a good long break from it. I'm always ready to get back out there in the spring and start all over again. And if I get bored once in awhile, I can always grow indoors, start vegetables for the spring or swap seeds. If I need more of. a break, I can do nothing. [g] And the killing off of bugs and disease over the winter and the magic of spring is a marvel every year.

We have a lot to be grateful for living in New England. I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

My3FatCats - I would love to hear about the towns in CT that have beautiful town centers. I haven't spent much time in CT.

Prairiemoon, towns in the Old Lyme area have very pretty town centers and historical buildings and homes. My grandparents used to live there after they sold their farm in Vermont.

Thanks Spedigrees - I love old towns and their architecture. :-). Is Old Lyme near the ocean? So you come from farming stock? [g]. Were your parents farmers too?

Old Lyme is on the Long Island Sound at the mouth of the Connecticut River, so yes, it's right on the ocean. You would have to go back 3 generations to reach farming stock in my bloodline. My parents were urban dwellers in Boston, and my grandparents' Vermont farm was not a working one. The grandparents' house sat on 100 acres of wooded and open land, and was a parcel from a working dairy farm down the road. They had a big vegetable garden and allowed people to harvest some of the timber, but they were retired when they bought the Vermont place. My grandmother's people were dairy farmers in Wisconsin. One of her siblings was president of the Holstein Association for awhile.

There is a lot of historic stuff in that area. A house that belonged to Florence Griswold and housed many of her artist friends was a sort of ground zero for the American Impressionist movement. Also Robert Tory Peterson lived in Old Lyme in his retirement. I think my grandfather knew him; he had a number of artist friends and I think that Peterson painted the birds on the glassware and china that my grandparents had, maybe the raccoon on the glass block bookends too. The Griswold family owns a lot of land in that town. The Griswold vs the state case was precedent-setting for the right of married couples to obtain birth control. Gillette's Castle is nearby and you can tour it. I think Old Ironsides is or was in that area as well, but battle ships never had much interest for me though I suffered several excursions to tour it as a kid.

BTW if you still want seeds from that sunflower you admired, email me your address and I'll send you some. spedigre@sover.net

P.S. Old Lyme is the hotbed center of Lyme Disease, for which it was named. Another claim to fame, but not the best one!

Well, even without farming, clearly your family were connected to the land and to animals. :-). Dairy Farming must have been hard work. That's unusual also for retired grandparents to purchase a 100 acres and have a big vegetable garden too. Sounds like hardy stock.

I've never been to Old Lyme, it sounds lie an interesting and pretty area. Old Ironsides is in Boston Harbor, right? We used to take the kids into Boston to see a lot of the sights. Made it to the Tall Ships the first time they came to Boston too. The kids loved it.

Thanks for the heads up on Lyme disease, definitely have to wear long pants tucked into the socks, if we would explore any grassy or forested areas. [g]

I tried to private message you about the seeds, but couldn't see a way to do that. You might try clicking on my profile and see if there is a button there to send me a message. I was waiting to see if had some seed to offer you, so hope you can message me. :-)

The Constitution is at the Charlestown Navy Yard where my grandfather used to work, just north of Boston. Plenty of history around here -- I was in Rhode Island a couple weekends ago looking at beautiful 250 year old dry laid stone walls. Almost makes up for the short winter days and cold, wet winter winds :)

Oops, I might be accused of being a fair weather poster since I haven't posted anything in so long.

My recent thought about New England and snow is that a niece who is teaching in the UAE is depriving her two young boys of sledding and snowballs. Although our son did not want to take ski lessons when he was young, he enjoyed snowmobiling from our doorstep and eventually did some skiing. Our granddaughters have taken ski lessons thru school programs and this year have their first season ski passes to a local mountain (Ragged). Our son actually had exciting winters when he was in middle and high school because he cleaned kennels for people who own Siberian huskies and they let him help with mushing. When he was 17 he mushed one of their teams in the Sandwich Notch Sled Dog race which I think was about 50 miles through Tamworth, the area where sled dogs were trained for polar expeditions.

There's a time when I've had enough of garden chores and food preservation (even though I don't do much) and welcome the frosts. Nowadays I think it is exciting that high tunnel technology has helped farmers produce something year round. I like one particular market farming couple who sell on Saturdays at the small winter farmers market nearby and the posts they make on facebook about what they are doing. Love the interior shots of beautiful spinach growing right now. I also follow the Eliot Coleman farm near Ellsworth ME and what they are growing. Four Seasons Farm - he wrote several books on marketing gardening in the northeast. Loved how he and his wife researched season extending techniques in Europe.

I'm glad we live with wildlife even if I curse the voles and other brazen furry creatures. Yesterday I talked with the library volunteer who posted a great picture of a bald eagle here in town having lunch. We live under the flight path of a loon or two that fly between a lake and a pond. We get excited to see a flock of Canada geese coming in low and circling but since the corn field is now a hay field, they rarely land.

We can see the passage of history when we compare an old photo of the house that used to be here (burned) and a hilly pasture behind it taken when sheep farming was popular and the woolen mills were running in Manchester and beyond. A lady at the craft fair makes wonderful socks on an antique knitting machine. There is barbed wire embedding in trees along the property line. Where sheep once grazed is now deep woods.

Oddly enough, I had to plant lilacs here although there are old grapevines. I don't think my husband's grandmother and great grandmother had time to grow flowers. We lived here for years before someone identified a flowering shrub they said was unusual this far north and, finally, we went into the woods at the right time to see it blooming. (I forgotten the name, a laurel I think, but looks something like an azalea).

I agree with loving the changing seasons. I don't think we ever get bored. And nobody has mentioned the wonderful apples that grow in New England. We are blessed to have two nearby orchards that grow a wide variety of heirloom apples. I have been buying a bag of Caville Blancs which are a good for cooking. I finally got out my mother-in-law's antique apple peeler which did a pretty good job although Cavilles have bumpy shoulders that need hand trimming.

I love the vibrancy of farmers markets and enjoyed going to the one at Wentworth Greenhouses just before Christmas. It is larger than the one at Cole Greenhouses in Concord so I think it is worth the extra drive once in awhile. Love the summer markets in Norwich VT. Love fresh apple cider! Love buying maple syrup from people we know and enjoy seeing the farmer's grandchildren gathering syrup from buckets along our road.

Fall isn't my favorite time and I hate November except for Thanksgiving. Spring is my favorite time especially the colors as the trees start budding. So far so good and no serious problems with ticks as long as we check and remove any we find. Sad to hear a long time 4-H leader has retired. He ran the Working Steer club where kids also learned how to make their own ox yokes. Thrilled that we have places like Sanborn Mills Farm in Loudon where old time skills are still being taught. I remember when NH Fish and Game started re-introducing wild turkeys to NH because at the time our town was one of the best places to release some. It's a treat to see baby wild turkeys and we keep our fingers crossed that the babies make it to adulthood. Last summer for the first time we saw a spotted fawn nursing.

We started two new asparagus beds last summer so I look forward to a future of fresh asparagus. Our old bed wasn't properly maintained but does give us a few meals. I read that it is sweetest right after picking so now it is a treat to cook it right away instead of putting it in the fridge for hours. And also love the PYO farms for fresh strawberries and blueberries. Made red pepper relish for the first time last fall and it is so good.

I started life in the city but always longed to live in the country. I'm glad my dream came true.

Defrost, that's a fabulous post! You outlined all that is good about New England and country living in that essay.

We never downhill skied (I'm afraid of heights) or snowmobiled, but we traversed many miles of trails on cross-country skis in past winters, I ice-skated occasionally, and we even got out sometimes on horseback in the snow. Nowadays the only winter exercise we get is to walk the dogs once a day around a loop that the hubby makes out in the pasture with the snowblower. The mandatory exercise that snowblowing and snow shoveling demand leaves no energy for snow sports, and our deteriorating sense of balance has made skiing just a fond memory.

I remember when they re-introduced wild turkeys here, just shortly after we moved here from the city. No one knew if they would thrive, yet just a few short years later, they opened a limited hunting season on them which they expanded in following years. Now those turkeys are everywhere and have infiltrated suburban and even city areas.

That is so cool about the working steer club and other places that practise and teach old time skills. The farm where we buy our chickens and other produce trains and uses steers for farm work as well as draft horses, but I don't think they make their own yokes. They might though, as they are quite handy with other wood carving and carpentry projects. I hope that some of these skills will be continued by the next generation.

thanks, spedigrees. I only went cross country skiing a couple of times and didn't have good balance when I was young. I bet the farm near you does make their own yokes or know how.

Loved to hear your experiences with country living in New England as well, Defrost. It's great that you were able to move into the country while you are still at an age where you can participate in so many of the activities that make it so worthwhile. It sounds very idyllic. :-)