His predictions are cult for some, others ridicule them. Sepp Haslinger has looked at his weather candle and reveals how much snow the winter brings.
- The inflorescence of the mullein around the Assumption of the Virgin shows how much snow the following winter will bring - of that, weather prophet Sepp Haslinger (79) is convinced.
- Against all doubters, the Benediktbeurer defends “old knowledge that must not be forgotten”.
- For this year he predicts a "sloppy winter".
Benediktbeuern - The Blessing of Herbs is part of the Assumption of Mary - an old custom that is still popular. The mullein is a special eye-catcher in many herb bushes. With its elongated growth and spike-like inflorescence, it differs significantly from other herbs in appearance. In addition to its medicinal use, for example against dry coughs, the mullein is also said to be a weather indicator - perhaps this is why it is often popularly called weather candle.
The Benediktbeurer Sepp Haslinger is convinced of the traditional knowledge. He's been looking closely these days. His résumé: “We're going to have a sloppy winter.” Which means that the coming winter will probably have less white splendor and more apere phases. “But you have to take the prevailing temperatures into account. When it is cold, a brief snowfall can stay there for a longer time. "
Assessment of the weather candle should not take place before mid-August
And how can this forecast be read from a weather candle? First of all, the right time for the assessment is important. It shouldn't take place before mid to late August. To do this, the plant must be fully grown, but still “live”. This applies, for example, when the top tip is still green and covered with flowers, while the entire lower part of the spike already looks brown and dry. “The green tip is otherwise of no significance,” explains Haslinger using a few specimens out in the wild.
The flowers that are currently still present - whether they appear sporadically or close together in the shape of a wreath - stand in the same proportion, so to speak, for snow. In order to assign the appropriate time periods, Haslinger takes the entire length of the ear (but without the green tip) and optically divides it into five or six lined up equal sections, depending on the length, which mark the winter months. A little below the middle is the winter solstice.
Weather candle prophet: "My predictions are not precise"
Of course, Haslinger emphasizes, you cannot make precise predictions for the day using the weather candle. “When it shows snow around Christmas, some people think that the flakes should fall on December 24th. It doesn't work like that. ”It is always a matter of“ approximate statements as to how things could be in the relevant period of time ”. And there is no 100 percent hit rate with other forecasts either.
How does the trained mechanical engineer come to this knowledge and what is his conviction based on? As a boy, he was out and about with his grandfather a lot, says the 79-year-old. "And I was there when he sat together with lumberjacks and was discussed in the round about whether and when logging should be carried out on the mountain." for that you needed snow. And so at that time people would have oriented their work planning to the weather candle.
The ancient knowledge about the weather candle could have originated in monasteries
But where do these theses come from about the connections between the willingness of the weather candle to flower and the weather conditions of the following winter? Haslinger believes that this traditional knowledge could have its origins in monasteries. In earlier times, monks and nuns were intensively involved with plants and medicine and gained a lot of knowledge from years of observation. Possibly also the knowledge that late summer with blooming weather candles was followed by snowy winters, during which a lot of healing tea had to be prepared from the abundance of flowers, says Haslinger. "In any case, it is an ancient knowledge that we must not allow to be forgotten."
Was Haslinger correct last year? Read here what the Benediktbeurer forecast for 2019.
Meteorologist Kai Zorn is pursuing completely different approaches in his forecasts. He had announced an extremely changeable summer.
From Rosi Bauer