Happy ending to 'Ice Saints'!

Unusual late frosts have damaged a large percentage of UK vines this spring and of course precious garden plants.

However, we are now just past the traditional period when a late frost is likely to occur which is called 'Ice saints' and fortunately the newly planted vines at Wye Chase Vineyard seem to have escaped unscathed. We believe that this is due to our sheltered position near Chepstow on the Severn Estuary, benefiting from mild Atlantic influences.

In UK and European weather lore, the Ice Saints are a cluster of saint’s feast days associated with a final cold snap, long believed to mark the last likely frost window:

Saint Mamertus — 11 May

Saint Pancras — 12 May

Saint Servatius — 13 May

Saint Boniface — 14 May

Saint Sophia — 15 May