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[Claude Jolicoeur <cjoli@gmc.ulaval.ca>]

Rivka wrote :
>>>>
The precipitation that I have expected to arrive as snow has been arriving as rain; not just this year, but in a number of recent years. We've had primarily rain, with a smaller amount of snow, in November, December, January, and February of this year so far (and not much of anything, in January). November used to be a tossup; December through February used to, most years, be snow covered except for a "January thaw" which would last a few days only.

While I don't mind not having to shovel, the snowpack we used to get had two major advantages: one, as it melted slowly in the spring, it filled up the groundwater supplies better (much of this winter's rain has fallen on ground at least partially frozen, and runs off downhill to the lake); two, it provided protection to lowgrowing perennials etc. by covering them, and some protection to trees by keeping the roots at a more consistent temperature.
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Rivka,
I am really surprised by your description of the winter around the Finger lakes - I would have expected this area to have some snow accumultion! Actually I thought it was only in zone 8 or better that the snow would not accumulate.

Would you believe that in the city of Quebec, zone 4, about 4 meters of snow have fallen to date (over 12 feet)? In the suburbs, on some streets, you can't see the houses because of the snow!

In addition to what you wrote, snow accumulation on the ground has the advantage of delaying dormancy break and decreasing spring frost risk.

Claude, in Quebec