Seasonal Changes in the Garden - October 2021

 For previous months in 2021, see here.

You never quite know what to expect weatherwise in October. Many people remember the October 1987 hurricane though, strictly speaking, it was a tropical storm. It is one of those events where everyone is supposed to remember where they were and what they were doing. Alas, not me! I was almost certainly at home in West London sleeping through it all because Michael Fish, the BBC weatherman, had assured us there would be no hurricane. Other parts of the country were less fortunate. Nearby Kew lost 700 trees and Wakehurst (Kew in the country) lost 20,000.

October can also be blessed with late summer warmth. England was warmer than Athens, Barcelona or Los Angeles on October 1st 2011 when the mercury reached over 29 ℃. And we are not usually short of rain in October.

In Hereford, October started out sunny and pleasantly warm as this photo, below taken on 1st October, shows. Plenty of greenery with the odd splash of colour from the roses, cosmos and fuschia.

By the middle of the month (14th), the final cucumbers and tomatoes had been harvested from the polytunnel (see table).

Come the end of the month (31st), there are clear signs of autumn colours starting to develop, particularly in the Acer (foreground). This month has been not too windy so the trees have kept their leaves.

Weather data for October 2021 are collated in the table. Warm and wet is probably the most concise description of the weather this month. 

October 2021 (2020)
Weather Parameter	Value	Dates
Average Monthly Temperature	13 oC (11 oC)
Maximum Monthly Temperature	20 oC (18 oC)	10th
Minimum Monthly Temperature	3 oC (4 oC)	22nd
Number of Air Frost Days	0 (0)
Number of Hot Days (> 25 oC)	0 (0)
Monthly Precipitation	114.2 mm (97.0 mm)
Greatest 24 h Precipitation	13.6 mm (37.4 mm)	19th - 20th
Number of Dry Days	15 (7)
Monthly Sunshine Hours (estimated)	74 (76)
Average Wind Speed	3 km/h (4 km/h)
Highest Wind Speed	43 km/h (39 km/h)	31st
Maximum Barometric Pressure (Sea Level)	1033.1 hPa (1028.2 hPa)	11th
Minimum Barometric Pressure (Sea Level)	984.4 hPa (978.4 hPa)	31st
Average Barometric Pressure (Sea Level)	1006.6 hPa (1007.7 hPa)