While not perfect the scurs were certainly correct on predicting some warmer temps. How will we fare this week? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy with a slight chance for an overnight shower or thunderstorm. Highs in the upper 70s and lows in the low 60s. Partly cloudy on Thursday with a slight chance of rain during the day with a good chance in the overnight. Highs near 80 and lows in the mid 60s. Friday, the first day of summer, partly cloudy with a moderate chance for showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the low 80s and lows in the upper 60s. Saturday and Sunday, partly cloudy with good chances for showers and thunderstorms Saturday night and Sunday. Highs in the low 80s and lows in the mid 60s. Monday, mostly cloudy with a modest chance for showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the low 80s and lows in the low 60s. Tuesday, mostly sunny with a slight chance of an afternoon shower or thunderstorm. High near 80 and lows in the low 60s. The normal high for June 21st is 81 and the normal low is 60. We will max out on daylight at 15 hours and 28 minutes, with the days beginning to be measurably shorter by one minute on the 26th. The scurs new pool furniture should arrive just in time.
The Full Moon for the month occurs on the 23rd and is known as the Full Strawberry Moon for obvious reasons. Normally by later June the strawberry season is starting to wind down. This year however it will likely coincide with some of the best berries of the season due to the cool spring. The Ojibwe and the Sioux both agreed on this one calling it the Strawberry Moon although they had to settle for the small wild variety. Mighty tasty as well but it would take some time to get enough to put on strawberry shortcake. At the ranch we call it the Full Lawn Mowing Moon as we often seem to finish the mowing well after dark.
June continues to follow the May rainfall pattern with measurable precipitation being recorded on 11 out of the first 18 days. Progress in area fields has continued to be slow as a result. There are still lots of folks trying to get their soybeans planted and getting stuck to boot. There are some who are still planting some corn into blank areas in fields not so much for getting corn as much as it is to have something out there other than weeds that will tolerate some of the herbicides applied. The comment has been made that this will be a spring to be remembered. It will also be one we’d just as soon forget. Early planted corn that was put in before the snow has reached V6 – V7. Many tried to take advantage of the narrow window of nice weather conditions to make their post emerge herbicide applications. These too have come at a price in some fields where wet spots have yet to disappear. Soybeans have begun to emerge and in general stand appear adequate despite some of the seed being lower than usual germinations.
Gardening activity at the ranch has been limited to Mrs. Cheviot getting all the large planters planted and yours truly scorching off the weeds in the garden with glyphosate. The soil in most of the garden area remains too damp to till and plant. We will be stabbing some things in yet once the tide goes back out.
The pasture fence was sprayed the same evening as the garden. The mosquitoes were ferocious as has been their wont this June. Luckily I was able to cinch my hooded sweatshirt down and gut it out. Walking through the long grass prompted clouds of the little blood thirsty insects to fly up and greet me. Not so luckily several of them followed me all the way into the garage, looking for any opportunity to get in the house they could find.
The pace of bird activity continues to slow at the feeders. Apparently the female Baltimore oriole must be sitting on the nest as she hasn’t been seen for some time. The female orchard oriole has been visible upon occasion but the main visitors to the jelly and nectar have been the males. The goldfinches have been increasing in number again as evidenced by their thistle seed consumption. Suddenly absent are both the indigo bunting and chickadees. One always hopes nothing happened to them although with the number of stray cats on the prowl one never knows.
We had yet another visiting skunk last week and probably wouldn’t have noticed it if Fudgie hadn’t poked her nose in the granary door. Something was rattling around in the trap as a response to her being nosey and I was hoping it was a cat. Much less danger of getting sprayed out of the deal. Alas such was not the case. It was a skunk all right and another big one at that. It still surprised me that one had suddenly appeared as the bait in the trap was months old and pretty dried out. They just don’t make moldy leftovers like they used to.
Back to the old drill again of pulling the trap out of the building with a long piece of twine attached. Getting the animal out without making a stink (pun intended) is nearly impossible. Shooting them with the blunderbuss is the easy part with removing them from the trap not far behind. This one was playing possum however. When dumped out of the trap, the skunk suddenly sprang back to life although his ability to spray had been largely curtailed. The trusty double barrel was close by so once the skunk was dispatched life was back normal once again. Well, except for the skunk of course.
See you next week…real good then.