Every spring, when the buds appear and the vines awaken, those who have always had their hands in the earth know that they must be wary. They are called the Ice Saints, a handful of days between the end of April and the end of May when the cold can return, discreet but sharp, burning young shoots and spoiling months of work. They are in no way a superstition, but the quiet observation of those who live to the rhythm of the seasons, generation after generation for ages.
From April 23, at Saint-Georges, then on the 2nd, at Saint-Marc, on the 30th, at Saint-Eutrope, on May 3, at the Sainte Croix and finally on May 6, at Saint Jean Porte Latine (the one which, it is said, closes the door from the cold), the elders watch the sky. These “frost riders” as they are called, remind us that spring is not yet sure. However, the most feared remain the three days of May: Saint Mamert on the 11th, Saint Pancras on the 12th, and Saint Servais on the 13th. “Mamert, Pancras and Servais make a little winter between them”, whispers the saying. How many gardeners and winegrowers have seen white frost on the tender leaves in the early morning?
But true peasant prudence will not stop there. We must wait for Saint-Urbain, on May 25, this patron saint of winegrowers who, according to popular wisdom, “holds all the ice saints in his hand”. For some regions, it is none other than the Hagia Sophia, the last sentinel of the late cold. Once this date has passed, only then will you be able to breathe… The plants can be taken out without fear, the earth will have given its blessing.
No fear here, but respect. The common sense of those who, for centuries, have gotten up before dawn, observed the frost on the branches and know that nature takes its time. A wisdom full of humility, transmitted from father to son, from mother to daughter, and which reminds us that patience remains a beautiful virtue.
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