Author: Nickolas, Great River School

Location: Lauderdale/Saint Paul MN

Weather: Very sunny. Blue skies. No rain, it's very dry. About 70-80 degrees. Very nice.

I'm sitting out side and it is very loud. There is wind gusting and tree leaves and branching swaying. There is a lot of traffic. Lots of honking and sounds from cars and motorcycle engines. The birds are making a lot of noise. And yet it is a very nice day out. It is very sunny and blue skies I guess at this time of day everybody is rushing to get home, or work, or somewhere (I'm about to go to ultimate practice). It is just a nice tuesday afternoon and everybody wants to make the best of it. Although there is a lot of chaos there is also flow. My apartment building parking lot is not that big but sometimes it's busy. For every car that leaves another comes. The streets are busy but not stopped or chaotic. The birds are still chirping in melody and good tones. Sometimes the world( or at least the area I'm in) is busy and sometimes it's quiet and peaceful. There is a good balance.

Author: Nickolas, Great River School

Location: MN

Weather: Sunny, blue skies, some white cotton clouds, slight winds, warm outside but when the wind hits your skin you get a little chilly. Probably 60-70 degrees.

I'm sitting outside of my apartment building. In the back there is a little enclosed off area kind of hidden in the woods, it is between housing and the golf coarse. It is really nice. I'm just sitting in the sun listening to all of the birds chirping and playing around. I can hear lots of scrapes on the bark of tres as squirrels run up and down trees. The sun is heating up my back and my head while the wind cools off my body. It is very peaceful. When I look around I see wonderful bright green trees that look like they are overexcited that it's springtime. There are still buds on the trees but most of them have turned into rich green leaves. On some of the trees there is even lots of bright pink flowers. I could sit here for days just listening to the leaves swaying in the wind, hearing the birds chirp and hearing the animals play. It is a very nice day.

Author: Joseph, Great River School

Location: Saint Paul, MN

Weather: 57 degrees Fahrenheit, damp

It is nice out tonight. It is damp yet not very cold. All I am wearing is shorts and a T-shirt and I feel just a little chilled. I can hear wet things dripping around me and birds chirping as well. Everything is getting so luscious and green. I can smell wet dirt. I also hear the water meter on the side of my neighbors house hissing away like it always does. The sky is a light purple like always, brighter on one horizon than the other. I hope this nice weather continues, although maybe not so much rain.

Author: Melanie, Great River School

Location: Wooded area near Como Lake

Weather: Mostly sunny, quite warm out. A very faint breeze. It poured earlier today

I haven't been here for two weeks now, and I can definitely tell. The grass is no longer a field of lush greenery. It is now dotted its purple clover and yellow dandelions, some of which are seeding. The lilac tree that was in full bloom is now withering away already, the flowers wilting and turning an odd brownish colour. The crabapple tree across the street, which had fragrant blossoms only weeks ago, is now devoid of all colours but green. The oak trees, which two weeks ago still had small, developing leaves, now provide full shade from the sun, although the leaves do still have a bright, young look to them. Butterflies are darting around. There are small yellow ones, and a few that look like tiger moths but might not be. A squirrel protects its territory from another with a loud chattering sound. The birdsong is constant. It's strange, because now that the weather seems to be transitioning to summery, the grasses and animals are only just fully transitioning to spring. This year has had such wacky weather, I can only wonder what the summer will be like!

Author: Lucy, Great River School 

Location: East of Lake Como, St. Paul, MN

Weather: 73 degrees F, 7 mph winds, sunny, clear blue skies

This tree now looks fully alive again, all of its branches are filled with bright green leaves. These leaves have an almond shape. Most of the leaf buds are now gone, leaving fully developed leaves in their place. Everything in the yard looks green and healthy. The bark of this tree also looks very healthy and sturdy, with barely any peeling parts.

Author: Evan, Great River School

Location: Backyard of my house

Weather: It is 45 F there is no wind. It's cloudy and the humidity is at 47%

It is really amazing all the trees and bushes are green and it's not even May 15th yet (the date where its safe to plant). The weather was amazing today in the morning it was a little bit misty and raining then about at ten o'clock the rain cleared and it was a clear day. All the plants are growing very nicely and the grass is very green. It started to get cool later in the evening and rain softly drizzled over the city so right now the ground is damp. I can very clearly see the difference in the flower gardens when it has rain than when it hasn't.

Author: Lilli, Great River School

Location: St.Paul

Weather: Wind 6 mph. 45 degrees Fahrenheit. Cloudy. Light rain almost all day.

Definitely a jacket kind of day. It was rainy and chilly. Right now its not that windy but still cold. Over the past week nothing has changed very much, everything is still really green. The lilacs are in bloom in my back yard and smell amazing. The hastas in my front yard are really big, and the grass is long and green. There still aren't leaves on my maple tree but it is growing, a little to dark to take the picture. There are squirrels running around as usual, dogs barking, people talking, but basically pretty quiet. Its been chilly all week, a few really warm days though. Summer is coming!

Author: Joseph, Great River School

Location: Saint Paul, Minnesota

Weather: 47 degrees Fahrenheit, clear skies

It is pretty chilly out tonight. There is a slight breeze that adds to it. The wind makes the leaves rustle a lot in the trees. It covers up any other sounds. I can make out the faint wail of an police cars siren though and my parents putting away dishes in the kitchen. The sky is a light purple like always, making the tree branches above my head look jet black. My neighbors across the alley from us have their back porch light on, illuminating their backyard, although I can only see a small part of it. There is always the lone street light brightening my other neighbors dark backyard. The grass is now a very rich green, although mostly everything else is still a light spring green. For some reason I smell a dead animal. Probably thawing out from being frozen all winter and just starting to rot. This is the last observation for April, hope that next month brings warmer weather.

Author: Kris, Friends School Minnesota

Location: Crosby Farm River

Weather: 32º, 0 precipitation, cloudy, no wind

Species Phenology List:
Animals:
shell of a Clam
Wood pecker
Squirrel
Snake skin
American Crow
Deer tracks
Rabbit tracks
Chickadee

Plants:
Willow
Grape vines
Algae
Silver Maple
Stinging Nettle
Sugar Maple
Norway Maple
Moss
Saskatoon Serviceberry
Quaking Aspen

Author: Tia, Great River School

Location: Roseville

Weather: Sun! 72 degrees hot small breeze

It's beautiful out!The weather is such an improvement from last week. The garden is thriving with the buds continuing to come through and the sun is bringing out the color in all of it. The bugs are definitely reappearing, ants spiders even small flies are surrounding the area which is good to see again.