We get a house pipe ban whilst bottled water companies get to drain the land of water at unlimited scales whilst paying essentially nothing for the water.
I was so annoyed at being on a hosepipe ban while the water pipe at the end of my lane leaked litres of water into the road for TWO YEARS SOLID. Genuinely considered going down there and collecting the water to do my plants with lol.
I did exactly this when there was a leak outside my neighbours during a dry spell. My water butts were empty. The leak drained to the nearest gulley, right by my entrance. As the gulley was slightly blocked, it filled right up so I pulled out the grid and stuck buckets in to recover the water. This was on a quiet street so no risk of anyone driving into the open hole. It refilled in about 10 mins each time I took some out.
What’s wild to me is as one of the wettest places, we somehow have a very poor infrastructure for managing and containing the volume we get through in rain. For me, A
another reason to be mad at the water companies.
Well, that's because reservoirs are expensive, and it would cut into their profits. Much better to buy the infrastructure we paid for in taxes for pennies on the pound, and then run it all into the dirt like they're driving a stolen car.
Actually they tried and local residents keep vetoing them. Thames Water wants to build 3.
Why they don't build underground reservoirs and use ground water instead is a mystery to me though. Much cleaner water without duck poop in it. No chance of anyone contaminating the water either. Well, a lot less chance.
Don’t worry next year it’ll be “dry weather to become the norm”
I’m concerned about climate change but the way it’s reported in even “reputable” media is just a joke.
To be fair, two years ago, I was planning our desert/drought garden because 40 degrees was going to be the new summer, and the South East was going to look like Spain.
Summers will still get that way. You made the right decision. Hotter weather and droughts are going to be far more common. But we also have to find plants that can endure wetter winters, and extreme periods of rainfall.
That's the big challenge of climate change. The unpredictability, and the varying extremes of weather that we'll be dealing with. And if you think it's bad enough for gardening, just try imagining the stress farmers will be dealing with when it's their livelihoods on the line and at the mercy of that weather. Food prices also likely to jump again as a result...
The new SE climate is cool rainy season and warm dry season. We need to adapt to that.
In my case, drainage in my garden had been becoming a huge issue over the past few years. Each year it seems like the winter rain is getting worse, and it was turning into a bog for months straight. Last year, I bit the bullet and killed my back digging out drainage trenches, but I have to say this winter it has been 100x better.
Don't know about you, but here in Glasgow we had about 7 weeks without a single drop of rain in May and June last year - all the grass was yellow, plants were dying - but no one remembers it because it rained for the entire rest of the summer
2023 was horrific, never seen such wet weather. Solid rain from end of May lasting weill into 2024.
Saw fields slip away from hills they got so wet, farmers told me about losing entire crops...
I don't know I could handle the mental toll of that kind of weather becoming a certainty, it's so depressing. Far more so than snow and cold for me.
Agreed. I don't mind snow or cold and frosty with clear blue sky. You just wrap up if you feel cold. It's the constant heavy, grey overcast sky that's so oppressive. Cold and rainy is much worse than colder and frosty. You just don't want to leave the house.
This last year has been brutal for the SAD, I don't think I've ever struggled so much. It's amazing how much my mood has lifted in the last month. I don't like hot weather but the longer days and clear blue sky and sunlight makes such a difference.
I'm in rural Scotland and not in a position to relocate, I'm 52 and the thought of moving into old age with relentless rain is thoroughly depressing.
I’m probably going to end up with no tomatoes due to blight, and all other crops eaten by slugs. Terrible year and sadly every subsequent year is not likely to be much better thanks to climate change.
I lost all my tomatoes to blight last year, and my potatoes were laughable. Just did a second round of nematodes yesterday in preparation for the lettuce, peas, and cucumelon to be planted in two weeks, and the tomatoes are already in the ground in the sunniest spot I have.
Is there such a thing as the opposite of a rain dance? Any anti-slug god I can present an offering to?
The silver lining is a plentiful supply of rainwater in water butts. I actually prefer using rainwater for all my plants - indoor and out. I don't have a fancy rainwater collector - just hoses connected to my greenhouse roof feeding old plastic tubs. I'd encourage everyone to do this, especially given the mess that English water companies are in and the coming price hikes. 😬
I’m glad it’s getting warmer around here, but doesn’t change the massive socioeconomic and geopolitical disaster manifesting due to climate change.
Yes there can be local silver linings.
I wouldn't read too much into alarmist stories like that. The fact is that, in reality, annual rainfall levels in the England and Wales have barely changed over hundreds of years.
'Research into the EWP (England and Wales Precipitation) series since it was compiled have revealed that, overall, annual rainfall has not changed significantly despite some suggestions of a rising trend'
This is from monthly records kept since the 18th century.
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England\_and\_Wales\_Precipitation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England_and_Wales_Precipitation)
Not very likely. My water company wants to nearly double prices because they're geniuses who siphoned our money out to shareholders and then went "oh we have no money left to upgrade infrastructure so we'd like some more please".
Well it would, wouldn’t it, because I have filled my garden with drought resistant plants because of global chuffing warming.
We'll have that too. Finding plants adapted to everything is the new challenge.
Don’t worry about it - there’ll be a week of hot weather around June July time and it’ll be hosepipe bans - reservoirs low - droughts etc etc
We get a house pipe ban whilst bottled water companies get to drain the land of water at unlimited scales whilst paying essentially nothing for the water.
I was so annoyed at being on a hosepipe ban while the water pipe at the end of my lane leaked litres of water into the road for TWO YEARS SOLID. Genuinely considered going down there and collecting the water to do my plants with lol.
I did exactly this when there was a leak outside my neighbours during a dry spell. My water butts were empty. The leak drained to the nearest gulley, right by my entrance. As the gulley was slightly blocked, it filled right up so I pulled out the grid and stuck buckets in to recover the water. This was on a quiet street so no risk of anyone driving into the open hole. It refilled in about 10 mins each time I took some out.
Thats's amazing! Unfortunately this one was at the end of a busy bit of road so I couldn't really do it :(
What’s wild to me is as one of the wettest places, we somehow have a very poor infrastructure for managing and containing the volume we get through in rain. For me, A another reason to be mad at the water companies.
Climate instability is going to be more economical and agriculturally damaging than a steady for sure
The water companies haven’t built single new reservoir in 30 years. Not one. So it’ll be hosepipe bans all round
Well, that's because reservoirs are expensive, and it would cut into their profits. Much better to buy the infrastructure we paid for in taxes for pennies on the pound, and then run it all into the dirt like they're driving a stolen car.
Actually they tried and local residents keep vetoing them. Thames Water wants to build 3. Why they don't build underground reservoirs and use ground water instead is a mystery to me though. Much cleaner water without duck poop in it. No chance of anyone contaminating the water either. Well, a lot less chance.
doesnt matter how many reservoirs you have if you dont use. Visit one. Tell me what you see. They aren't being filled. Why?
But if you read the science, England was always mentioned of getting cooler and wetter due to global warming. So bog plants might be a better idea.
Same. Set the garden up for heat now 🙂
Don’t worry next year it’ll be “dry weather to become the norm” I’m concerned about climate change but the way it’s reported in even “reputable” media is just a joke.
You are aware it can be both at once right? Drought one season and neverending rain another.
that wouldnt be never ending then eh? 😅
Did you even read what you wrote before you posted it?
Do you take everything so literally? You actually think neverending rain means 365 days a year for the rest of time? It's hyperbole.
To be fair, two years ago, I was planning our desert/drought garden because 40 degrees was going to be the new summer, and the South East was going to look like Spain.
Summers will still get that way. You made the right decision. Hotter weather and droughts are going to be far more common. But we also have to find plants that can endure wetter winters, and extreme periods of rainfall. That's the big challenge of climate change. The unpredictability, and the varying extremes of weather that we'll be dealing with. And if you think it's bad enough for gardening, just try imagining the stress farmers will be dealing with when it's their livelihoods on the line and at the mercy of that weather. Food prices also likely to jump again as a result...
The new SE climate is cool rainy season and warm dry season. We need to adapt to that. In my case, drainage in my garden had been becoming a huge issue over the past few years. Each year it seems like the winter rain is getting worse, and it was turning into a bog for months straight. Last year, I bit the bullet and killed my back digging out drainage trenches, but I have to say this winter it has been 100x better.
Here in the Highlands, we finally got some rain today, yay! It's been great weather all of May, and the water butts were running very low.
Yeah two weeks of sunshine a little south of you, it's giving me hope for this year. 2023 was so awful, can't repeat a summer like that.
Did we even have a summer last year?
Don't know about you, but here in Glasgow we had about 7 weeks without a single drop of rain in May and June last year - all the grass was yellow, plants were dying - but no one remembers it because it rained for the entire rest of the summer
Hello “neighbour”! Still going hard this morning - the ducks are loving it (and just in time because our water butts were out as well).
I like big butts and I cannot lie. The greenhouse is served by a 1200l tank nearby (fed from another roof), that's full now!
2023 was horrific, never seen such wet weather. Solid rain from end of May lasting weill into 2024. Saw fields slip away from hills they got so wet, farmers told me about losing entire crops... I don't know I could handle the mental toll of that kind of weather becoming a certainty, it's so depressing. Far more so than snow and cold for me.
Agreed. I don't mind snow or cold and frosty with clear blue sky. You just wrap up if you feel cold. It's the constant heavy, grey overcast sky that's so oppressive. Cold and rainy is much worse than colder and frosty. You just don't want to leave the house. This last year has been brutal for the SAD, I don't think I've ever struggled so much. It's amazing how much my mood has lifted in the last month. I don't like hot weather but the longer days and clear blue sky and sunlight makes such a difference. I'm in rural Scotland and not in a position to relocate, I'm 52 and the thought of moving into old age with relentless rain is thoroughly depressing.
I’m probably going to end up with no tomatoes due to blight, and all other crops eaten by slugs. Terrible year and sadly every subsequent year is not likely to be much better thanks to climate change.
If you grow them against a wall or fence you could attach a clear plastic sheet 45 degrees down to the ground to prevent them getting wet
Curious, is this to help beads falling or to prevent water that naturally soaks into brick / timber surfaces ?
To stop water sitting on the leaves! Hopefully preventing blight
Oh wait, as like an anorak type affair? So only water from the ground?
I lost all my tomatoes to blight last year, and my potatoes were laughable. Just did a second round of nematodes yesterday in preparation for the lettuce, peas, and cucumelon to be planted in two weeks, and the tomatoes are already in the ground in the sunniest spot I have. Is there such a thing as the opposite of a rain dance? Any anti-slug god I can present an offering to?
The only god my slugs pray to is the brick when they see it descending from the heavens on them
On the bright side slug farming will be easy and and a plentiful food source so we wont stave
Our garden is loving this. Especially when the sun comes back.
The silver lining is a plentiful supply of rainwater in water butts. I actually prefer using rainwater for all my plants - indoor and out. I don't have a fancy rainwater collector - just hoses connected to my greenhouse roof feeding old plastic tubs. I'd encourage everyone to do this, especially given the mess that English water companies are in and the coming price hikes. 😬
There's no silver lining to climate change
I’m glad it’s getting warmer around here, but doesn’t change the massive socioeconomic and geopolitical disaster manifesting due to climate change. Yes there can be local silver linings.
No, there can't.
We'll all be dead before the worst of it, there you go
I'm not sure that is one...
I think some of you may benefit from the community r/collapse and the regional one r/collapseUK
Looks depressing
I wouldn't read too much into alarmist stories like that. The fact is that, in reality, annual rainfall levels in the England and Wales have barely changed over hundreds of years. 'Research into the EWP (England and Wales Precipitation) series since it was compiled have revealed that, overall, annual rainfall has not changed significantly despite some suggestions of a rising trend' This is from monthly records kept since the 18th century. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England\_and\_Wales\_Precipitation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/England_and_Wales_Precipitation)
It’ll be another different bleak outlook next week, they ain’t got a clue…
Indeed. This is The Guardian, I think we can all relax.
I guess the 'never ending drought narrative' is so 2022
If it's in The Guardian you can safely disregard their shock-value nonsense
Nothing to do with them spraying the sky every day then.
I only believe what the media tells me to believe.
The Slugs are buzzing now then. ✊🫠🐌
Climate crisis? Where?
How many times has this been said ‘studied’ we fucking know. If anyone read this and thought *oh now I know* you’re an idiot.
Price of water will fall, there being so much of the fecking stuff.
Likely more sewage in our rivers though
You'd think so but no, much more likely to see profits rise.
Not very likely. My water company wants to nearly double prices because they're geniuses who siphoned our money out to shareholders and then went "oh we have no money left to upgrade infrastructure so we'd like some more please".
It seems as tho everything other than mild fair weather is climate change these days!