Not really a lot of snow.
This country really does struggle with snow doesn’t it! We’ve only had a couple of inches here in Leicestershire, but the world is in turmoil. When I was talking to one the German masons that does work for us, he said he’d been back home (East Germany that was) and it was minus 16 when he got off the plane. East Germany is where Berlin is for those that didn’t know.
Although our weather is pretty wet and miserable, it is also generally quite mild. Would you rather be carving a stone fireplace in a shower of rain… or in a temperature of minus 16? I’ll put my raincoat on everytime!
Of course fixing and installing stone work in freezing conditions is best avoided. The Lime mortar will freeze, and the stone is so cold that often the blocks of your stone stairs or stone fireplaces are frozen together, and you just cannot separate them. Best to do some internal stone work if you have some!
Stone work of course has been done in any weather! In some countries where cold weather is prevalent, then the masons have no choice, and there is always a way round any problem. Much as has been mentioned before: Many stone fireplace and stone staircase installations take a great deal of ingenuity due to restrictions on site. It’s all part of the job and the challenge.