MARCH 2009 
nearly Spring- 15th March was first "warm" day of 2009
and a chance to get out in the garden to tidy up and mow
the grass.
Lots of new buds appearing -
Hydranger looking heathy with new growth - just cut off old
flower heads will have to watch weather forecasts for frost
warnings
red robin made good growth last year and
looks shiny and heathy
fish waking up from harsh winter - loads of buds
on wisteria, hopefully a good show of lovely
white flowersthis year
woodland area waking up - helibore in flower and a few
snowdrops
spurge has some white flowers
cotoneasters seem to have been killed off by cold
I'll give them another month to see if they come back
to life
mock orange still dormant, butterfly bush has some
buds
north facing border looks surprising good considering the cold
winter - the virginia creeper has lots of buds and clematis
showing signs of growth
MARCH 09 weather
An unsettled first half of the month was followed by a
fine, mainly sunny week before turning less settled and cloudier towards
the end. The mean temperature for the month was above normal. Sunshine duration
was well above normal and, provisionally, it was slightly sunnier than March
2003 making it the second-sunniest March in the series. Rainfall was well
below normal, especially over parts of the north-east and Midlands, making
it the driest March since 2003.
1st to 14th: The first half of the month was changeable
as weather systems spread bands of rain and showers eastwards. A cold front
that spread a band of heavy rain eastwards during the 3rd gave totals of more
than 25 mm in parts of south-west England. Wintry showers followed overnight
and then clearing skies led to icy roads in western areas early on the 4th.
The most notable event during this spell occurred early on the 5th, when an
area of low pressure brought some locally-heavy snowfalls to south-west England.
15 cm of snow accumulated in parts of Devon, Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire.
This was followed by a very cold night, with the temperature at Benson (Oxfordshire)
falling to a minimum of -5.9 °C early on the 6th. Atlantic fronts spread
an area of heavy rain eastwards late on the 9th and early on the 10th with
Liscombe (Somerset) recording 22.2 mm.
15th to 22nd: High pressure brought settled conditions.
The days were often sunny in many areas, although it was dull and cloudy at
times, especially near eastern coasts. On some nights locally-dense fog patches
formed, particularly early on the 19th across the West Midlands and the West
Country, although the fog dispersed by the afternoon. In general the nights
were chilly, with frosts occurring in many areas. The afternoons, on the other
hand, were warm where the sunshine broke through, particularly across southern
England where the temperature regularly peaked at around 5 °C above the
March average. Maximum temperatures approached 17 °C in the south during
this spell, with 16.7 °C at St James's Park (London) on 16th and 16.6 °C
at Chivenor (Devon) on 17th.
23rd to 28th: A return to more unsettled
conditions as weather fronts brought further rain and showers at times.
This spell was often characterised by windy, gusty conditions with
sunshine and heavy, blustery showers, which were occasionally wintry on
the higher ground. There was also some hail and thunder in places.
Afternoon temperatures were quite close to the average for March, but
strong winds made it feel significantly colder, especially near the
east coast on the 28th.
29th to 31st: A quieter few days, with
generally high pressure. Some weak fronts did edge in from the west on
the 30th, bringing a little drizzle to northern areas, but on the whole
they only served to bring the month to a rather cloudy end.