Sign of Spring

Maybe because of last week's spring-like temperatures, these snowdrops aside Phil and Mary Miller's North Hopewell Township home were blooming Sunday.

Miller says his snowdrops don't usually pop until late March, but this so far has been a warm and nearly snowless winter.

Snowdrops may have medicinal purposes, aside from being pretty and an uplifting sign of spring. This from England's Mail Online:

This small, white flower blooms in the late winter.
Traditional uses: Rub-on treatment for headaches, painkiller and poison antidote.
Modern uses: Reminyl, one of the main type of drugs used to treat mild to moderate dementia, is derived from galantamine, a compound found in snowdrop bulbs.
It helps increase levels of acetylcholine, a brain chemical involved in the transmission of messages from nerve cells.
Alzheimer’s is associated with a drop in acetylcholine levels — galantamine stops or delays the decline, helping to maintain memory.
‘Galantamine was originally tested for use in conditions such as eye, gastric and heart disorders.
'It wasn’t until the Eighties that it was explored for potential benefits in dementia,’ says Dr Melanie-Jayne Howes of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

 

Enjoy 'spring' while you can

For the last week of January, today's temperatures of 64 degrees is plenty comfortable;  daffodils are pushing their way from under the dead leaves and 23 robins were seen feasting on a Lancaster County lawn.

Maybe a sign of early spring?

Or maybe not, since the low temperatures on Friday will fall to a more typical 19 degrees, following a high of 30. Enjoy 'spring' while you can.

By the way, seeing robins isn't necessarily a sign of spring. That's just wishful thinking. This from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology--

"Although robins are considered harbingers of spring, many American Robins spend the whole winter in their breeding range. But because they spend more time roosting in trees and less time in your yard, you're much less likely to see them. 

The number of robins present in the northern parts of the range varies each year with the local conditions. During winter many robins move to moist woods where berry-producing trees and shrubs are common. "