I have always loved Spring and Fall. Spring the most because I get to watch nature come alive after a perpetually long winter. The first couple of months of winter I have come to love, especially when the first few snowfalls happen but after a while, I want to hurry up and get to spring. I think it’s the Florida girl in me. Spring blasts in loudly in Florida. Here in South Greenland, spring eases in.
One of the things I’ve noticed over the past twelve years is how there are small signals and larger-than-life signals of spring here in South Greenland.
One of the smaller signals is when you see the first green foliage popping up where areas of snow have already thawed. Dandelions are the first to shoot up new growth it seems. You could walk by it on a Tuesday and see only foliage and then walk back by it on a Wednesday to see flower buds already on the plant! It always amazes me how fast plants go from being dormant to in full bloom within days. Must be all those long hours of sunshine during the summer months!
Then the march through spring starts to show up all over the town with different kinds of flowers everywhere. I’ve noticed that for some years Lupines have exponentially bloomed everywhere.
While a different year has an abundance of white daisy flowers everywhere during spring and summer. It’s interesting every year to see which plants flower the most while others are mediocre.
Some examples of other plants that grow here in Qaqortoq, Greenland
I think that it has a whole lot to do with how our winter months are and how spring and summer is. Lots of rain tends to produce more of something while other times when there hasn’t been rain for weeks other plants do better. Our weather is definitely changing here which has caused secondary changes in our weather and how it affects Greenland overall.
The second thing is icebergs or sea ice. This year we had sea ice as far as the eye could see in both directions of our fjord. It always amazes me how it turns into a traffic ice jam. Nothing can get in or out if it’s jammed up tightly against each other.
I always see boats trying though. Sea ice signals the hunting of seals for hunters who add seal meat to their food table. This is a way of life. Hunting of seals dates all the way back to the Saqqaq age. Once the ice leaves usually we start to see Cod fishing commencing as well.
The ice tends to stick around for about a month to six weeks. Most folks are ready for it to leave so that boats and ships can come and go here. I have taken some magnificent photos of icebergs in the fjord as well. I’m hoping we’ll see some next year since there have been so few of them this year. 🙂 🙂
Living Greenland 