A warm October, but Ophelia may put the wind up us
Quite enough has been written about storms in recent days, not least from the pen of your own correspondent.
First is the forthcoming anniversary of the Great Storm of 1987 on Monday and the re-emergence of Michael Fish claiming: “Not my fault, guv.”
Then there is the fact the actual anniversary may coincide with the remnants of Ophelia – a record 10th consecutive named storm in the Atlantic to reach hurricane intensity – barrelling in towards us.
In all likelihood Ophelia will pass to the west of Britain and I write this paying heed to the folly of Fish. But even without Ophelia making landfall on Monday, we should be braced for some heavy winds, particularly in the west where speeds of 70mph and rising has been mooted.
Not quite on 1987 levels, mind, with the fiercest gusts 115mph. And so perhaps before they all get blown away to moulder on the forest floor, I wish to pay tribute to autumn’s leaves.
This has been yet another strangely warm October – at this rate it will be hotter than September just gone – and temperatures could reach 68F (20C) in places this weekend.
The unseasonable weather is creating a spectacular array of colours in the canopy. Sunshine helps the leaves absorb plenty of sugars which produce reds, golds and oranges as they flow back into the tree. Cold autumnal nights kill off the green chlorophyll in leaves, engendering the season’s kaleidoscopic assemblage.
I strolled through a woodland in Kent this week, boots crunching off fallen sweet chestnuts, flickers of gold at the curved edges of broadleaves, and didn’t even wear a coat.
The increasingly warm Octobers in recent years means leaf colours have taken longer to turn. And they also prove quicker to dissipate in the eye of a storm. So enjoy them this weekend, in case they are snatched away.