All of the above flora photos were taken at the Ranch (Breeze office) on Sunday, February 11th. At the top is the first daffodil bloom. Center are crocuses which made their presence known sometime during the first week of the month. Bottom right is a colony of daffodils which are still a week or more from producing dazzling blooms.

Retha Lemon of 888 Midland Trail in Hurricane heard the spring peepers sing on the evening of February 9th.

Retha is always among the first to report the peepers. This, however, is the earliest that the delightful tree frogs have emerged from their winter slumber.

The Breeze peepers are late sleepers and have never sung before the second week in March. Evening breezes cause temperatures at the Ranch to run 4° or 5° cooler than those in city limits.

The lower mercury readings at the Ranch do not deter robins from seeking early bird rewards. The first Breeze sighting of 12 or more robins was on January 7th. The same red breasted avians reappeared on the 10th and 13th.

The crocuses always show their faces in early February unless it is unusually cold. The daffodils are quite a bit slower, usually blooming in early March. That is not the case this year. First bloom was February 11th.