Betweenthismonth’scovers…

Whilst we regard March as the first month of spring, astronomically it straddles the seasonsasthefirsttwentydays leading up to the equinox belong to winter. In many respects it’s a month of preparationandanticipation;for farmers it is the sowing season and in the Christian Church the month is largely dominated by the Lenten fast and the approach of Easter.

“IMartiasam!Oncefirst,and nowthird! ToleadtheYearwasmy appointedplace; Amortaldispossessedmebya word, AndsetthereJanuswiththe doubleface.” temperaturesclimbdramatically and puffy white clouds dash across crystal-clear skiesthough such days are often followedbyfrostynightsorrainy unsettled period. But March brings the spring and by the time the lion has uttered its final winter roar and made way for thegentlerdaysofAprilthelook of the land has been transformed and its life awakened.

Lide - an early name for March -isderivedfromtheOldEnglish word Hlyda, which probably referred to the loudness of the wind this month. The word has survived in a country proverb that recommends the eating of “leeks in Lide and ramsins (garlic) in May”. The AngloSaxons named it Lenetmonath (length month) which refers to the lengthening of the days during this month.

March is named for Mars, the Roman god of war and it used to bethefirstmonthoftheyear; it was only when the Roman calendar was replaced with the Gregorian calendar in the eighteenth century that another month - again named for a Roman god, this time Janustook its place on the first page of the calendar.

March can give us glorious sunny days when the air

The first of the month is of course St David’s Day. St David is the patron saint of Wales and little is known for certain about his life, though he is said to have been the son of aprinceorchieftainofCardigan in Wales, and to have founded several Welsh monasteries.

Customs observed on St David’sDayincludethewearing of one of the national symbols of Wales, either a leek in the hatband or a daffodil in the buttonhole. There has been much debate over the significance of the leek. St David is thought to have instructed his men to wear leeks in battle so that they could be easily distinguished from the enemy, whilst an alternative explanation is simply that leeks, like daffodils, are readily available at this time of year. It was formerly customary on 1 March for villagers to help out any neighbours who hadn’t been able to finish their ploughing before the end of February and each would bring a contribution, often in the form of a leek, to the communal meal that would be enjoyed at the end of a hard day’s work.

By the middle of the month the hedgerows around our house are beginning to bloom, decked with first blackthorn blossom (which oftenheraldsacoldsnap),followed by hawthorn, and, later in the season,wildhoneysucklesanddog roses. At the base of the hedges you can see fresh green growththebrightgreenofyoungnettletips is particularly prominent, though you will also see violets, primroses and again, later in the season, bluebells will begin to appear.

Walking quietly along a hedge as dusk falls, listening to the rustling ofsmallcreaturesandthefinalnotes ofbirdsong,whilstsmellingthefresh scents of damp earth and newgrowing plants gives a sense like nothingelsecanofnaturepreparing for a new growing season ahead.

“Robert,thismorning, complainsofinsufficient breakfast. Cannotfeelthat porridge,scrambledeggs,toast, marmalade,scones,brown bread,andcoffeegiveadequate groundsforthisbutadmit porridgeisslightlyburnt. How impossibleevertoencounter burntporridgewithoutvivid recollectionsofJaneEyreat LowoodSchool,sayI parenthetically. Thisliterary allusionnotasuccess.”

Piran’s Day is the national day of Cornwall and is celebrated on 5 March. St Piran is the patron saint of tin miners and he’s sometimes given the credit for discovering this metal. The Cornish flag - a white cross on a black background, is said to represent the granite that rolled from his fire one night, oozing white tin. Little is known about the life of this saint, though it’s believed that he was born in Ireland in the sixthcentury. He wasknownforhis miraculous deeds and the story goes that a group of jealous nobles put a millstone around his neck and threw him into the sea. But he didn’t drown, instead floating to shore at Perranporth, which is named after him. There he began to spread the word about Christianity, his first disciples being a fox, a bear and a badger.

Easter often falls during the month of March - although not this year. A complicated ecclesiastic formula dictates that Easter Sunday should be celebrated on the Sunday immediately following the first full moon after the spring equinoxunless that day itself is a Sunday which delays the celebration of Easter by another week. The earliest that Easter Day can fall is March 22, and the latest more than a full month later on April 25. (This year Easter Sunday falls on April 9). But here in the UK the real day to celebrate is the day the clocks go forward and British Summer Time begins. Overnight the winter gloom is banished and we experience an instant feeling of wellbeing.