17 Comments

The Hare Moon suits me best. Here in North Central Alberta we are just beginning to notice a change in the colour of the wild snowshoe hares as their stark white winter coats begin to molt into their spring coats of brown.

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Oh that's lovely Jane ... when the symbol for the Moon really does fit with what you yourself are witnessing in nature. I'll have to look up snowshoe hares. I hadn't heard of them! Here the muntjacs too are getting new reddish coats after their drab winter browns that blend in so well against the fallen bracken.

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We are definitely under the Snow Crust Moon where I am. The ground is still covered in snow and we even had that rare and exciting Thunder Snow recently, when a foot of snow fell in the night. It’s crisp and clear tonight and the moon is bright. The wild garlic is still underground.

We don’t have hedgehogs here but my daughter had an African Pygmy hedgehog as a pet. They don’t really make very good pets, solitary creatures that they are. She was a sweet little being though.

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A foot of snow! Does Thunder Snow refer to how fast it falls, or do you hear thunder at the same time? I hadn't heard the phrase before but it does sound exciting. I imagine a hedgehog, even a pygmy one, being a challenging pet with all the fleas the poor things seem to attract, but I can well believe she was sweet!

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There is thunder and lightning accompanying the snowfall. The conditions have to be just right but it’s very neat!

No fleas on the hedgie. She was very pampered and in fact needed to be kept warm with a heat lamp in her cage in the cooler months but she sometimes went out on the grass in summer sun looking for grubs.

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What a lovely read, thank you. I like hare moon but also, I think I’d call it stirring moon because nature really is stirring from it’s winter rest now although it’s probably gone back to sleep again during the recent cold snap.

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Oh yes Tracy, I really like Stirring Moon too, and I’ve never heard that idea before. I like your thinking! We all love hares and Hare Moon seems to have the popular vote, but there are so many possible evocative choices for this liminal, tricksy month. During this afternoon’s heavy sleet/hail shower I hoped that nature wasn’t becoming disheartened!

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What a wonderful read this is. It’s taken me a bit to finish. While I was reading all about the lore of trees we were having a March snowstorm. The snow was so wet and heavy that I could hear trees and branches cracking all night and I woke up to a cold white world with many tree-sized branches strewn around the garden. I was amazed to find an old alder came down and broke into pieces and missed the hutches, shrubs and young trees in its path. As if it knew not to.

I like Hare Moon. I’ve always loved hares and rabbits and actually home a couple of unwanted “pets.” I have fond memories of Beatrix Potters stories and cozy watercolour pictures of country life. Thanks for lovely writing and references to written works. Hopefully March will go out like a lamb!🐇🐇

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Thank you Cornelia for your kind and thoughtful comment and you are definitely in the majority with your vote for Hare Moon. I’m hoping March will go out like a lamb too! While the sleet, snow, hail, wind and sun mixture definitely keeps us on our toes it would be nice for the emerging green shoots to know whether they’re coming or going! PS Though I was sorry to hear that your alder fell, how considerate it was :)

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An interesting read as always Imogen, thank you. I think it' hare moon for me as I love them so much, although windy moon would be more accurate today where I am on the Norfolk coast!

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Gosh yes, it’s been Windy Moon here too for the past several days. My wheelie bins just won’t stay upright and after a mild, quite sunny afternoon I couldn’t believe my eyes and ears when a barrage of hail and sleet seemed to come out of nowhere. REAL March weather!

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What lovely blackthorn flowers! Nothing is growing here yet since winter still has a hold on the natural world. Windy Moon is very apt for Colorado weather since it’s been gusty here for weeks. I really enjoyed all the information about hedgehogs! They aren’t native to the US, so I’ve never seen any wild ones (only as pets). They’re adorable little things and I hope they flourish once again near you!

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Thank you Daisy Anne. Until

I saw the comments from friends like you in the USA and Canada I hadn’t realised that hedgehogs weren’t native to the North American continent. They are lovely but I know they are very prone to fleas, bless them, and wonder if that’s a problem with the pet ones? I saw a white hedgehog once in an animal sanctuary, an albino with pink eyes that couldn’t manage in the wild. A dear little thing indeed.

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What a fascinating read Imogen. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.

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Thank you Richard. I realise it’s a bit of a miscellany but it seemed to want to be that way!

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Thank you Imogen for such an intresting and entertaining read. I loved the aboriginal moon names

here in Winnipeg Manitoba we are blessed with such a wonderful indigenous culture that so enrich our lives, so much of it is only just being appreciated. I loved the poems and book references!

and hedgehogs too , just precious. I hope they have a nightly hedgehog- hoedown in your lovely garden celebrating the full moon and the approaching greening of the land .

Love and Blessings from Canada

Denise xo

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Oh Denise, I’m hoping for a hedgehog hoedown too! I always love your ‘updates’ from a place so far from here; wonderful to imagine it and you make it very vivid. It’s heartening that the rich indigenous heritage is now being recognised. Love to you X

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