The ancients called it “double-faced February”, reflecting the way this month can veer so easily between a bitterly cold winter and the sunny prospect of spring.
As in January, mild weather in February is not always welcome; indeed one proverb curses “a fair February”, as any change in the usual order of nature may disrupt the seasonal balance, and cause disease in people, crops and livestock. Hence another graphic saying: “When gnats dance in February, the husbandman becomes a beggar.”
Fine weather may not be all it’s cracked up to be, either, judging by this Cornish saying: “A February spring is not worth a pin.”
February has its fair share of holy and saints’ days, including Candlemas on the 2nd, and the feast of St Valentine on the 14th. Though the evenings may be getting lighter, we are cautioned against assuming that the winter is already over: “At Candlemas Day, another winter is on its way.”
Others are more optimistic, with one saying confidently asserting that if there are clouds and rain on that day: “Winter is gone and won’t come again.”
Other February saints’ days are also meant to mark changes in the weather, especially as we get towards the end of the month and the first signs of spring – birdsong, bumblebees and early wild flowers such as celandines – start to appear. But beware: late February and March can bring further freeze-ups; and however mild the weather has been, winter may still have some nasty surprises in store.
