More Dogwood Lore

The rural people of Cumberland Plateau are keen observers of nature and weather. Over the years they gathered much knowledge concerning seasonal weather lore. Counting the fogs on August Morns to predict the number of snows in the winter, the thickness of the hulls on the hickory nuts to tell the harshness of winter, even whether or not to set out on that fishing trip...

When the wind is blowing in the North
No fisherman should set forth,
When the wind is blowing in the East,
'Tis not fit for man nor beast,
When the wind is blowing in the South
It brings the food over the fish's mouth,
When the wind is blowing in the West,
That is when the fishing's best!

Another one of these legends concerns a natural phenomenon that occurs each spring when winter returns. In April, the white the blossoms of the dogwood tree cover the hardwood understory. But during this blooming, there is always a cold spell, which brings a dramatic drop in temperature and an light frost and even the occasional snow flurry. My grandparents and parents (and lots of other Tennessee folks) called this Dogwood Winter, and I’ve observed it too, occurring almost every year without fail during my childhood and early adulthood.

Instead of April, dogwoods bloom in mid-March in south Georgia. Earlier in the week, we saw several days with temperatures in the mid to upper 80's. A strong North-West wind yesterday afternoon and clear skies overnight delivered lows in the lower 40's.

Dogwood Winter in even defined on Dave's Garden website (the first entry when you Google). Now, where have I heard of that URL before???