The natives have turned their ire from the scurs. Moderating temps along with some timely but not excessive rainfall has them focused on headier matters. Will the cure so far hold or are we destined for the steam bath again? Starting Wednesday, mostly sunny with a modest chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the upper 70’s with lows in the low 60’s. Thursday, mostly sunny with highs in the low 70’s with lows in the mid-50’s. Mostly sunny on Friday with highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Saturday, mostly sunny with a slight chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Partly sunny for Sunday with a moderate chance of showers. Highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the mid-50’s. Monday, mostly sunny with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the mid-50’s. Partly cloudy Tuesday with possible showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the mid-50’s. The normal high for July 30th is 82 and the normal low is 61. On the 30th the sun will rise at 6 a.m. the same as we saw back on May 5th. Given the perfect sleeping weather, the scurs will be rolling over and hitting the snooze bar. Fall will be here before we know it.
The 27th marks the Full Moon for July. This goes by the Full Buck Moon and is aptly named as the white-tailed deer buck’s prized antlers are in their velvet. There are numerous deer around and with the biting insects becoming more obnoxious in the woods, they’re frequently out in the open trying to escape them. Be on the lookout for them. This Full Moon also goes by several other names including The Full Thunder Moon and Full Hay Moon. The Ojibwe knew this as the Full Raspberry Moon and the Sioux called this The Moon When Cherries are Red. At the ranch it becomes the Moon When We’re on the Move. State Fair is on the horizon as is the Farm Journal Midwest Crop Tour. Ruby develops a complex. It’s always nice to be appreciated.
Crop progress slowed perhaps slightly although it was pretty hard to tell by looking at it since last week. We should have some fantastic corn pollinating weather this week with moderate temperatures leading the way. Soybeans too should be setting pods and maintaining them at a rapid pace. There’s very little stress as a result of either moisture or temperature. Some were getting nervous about soybean aphids and the situation remains relatively static here at this point. Yes, soybean aphids can be found but they remain far below treatment thresholds. It behooves us to be patient until the threshold of 250 aphids per plant on 80 percent of the plants is reached. Treating early can knock beneficial insect populations out only to allow the soybean aphids to flare later. Not only that but low levels of remaining insecticide as it degrades encourage the development of insecticide resistance. To our west and north this is already reality.
Much of this edition will be written from Canada once again. It’s been a while since I visited the Great White North in the summertime, the last time being back in 1984. This time we were greeted by Canada’s aggressive mosquito population. They were large relative to the southern MN type I’d left behind and wasted no time landing and biting with a vengeance. It was almost like one of those old Off mosquito repellent commercials. Unloading the vehicle into the cabin reminded me that these mosquitoes operate on a short season so they have to make every second count. After unloading all our gear into the cabin we spent several hours getting the hungry pests under control. The electric mosquito rackets made it a challenge. Something satisfying about hearing them zapped on the small electrical grid.
We spent a little of our time picking up a couple trailers of wood and while perhaps not a Club Med vacation, the fishing was fun. We enjoyed catching and releasing the numerous smallmouths. One of the things that made this trip very special was the return of a guy who’d made the journey many times over the years before I started going along. I had the opportunity to meet him in 2015 on that trip. Shortly after that he was diagnosed with cancer and along with heart issues. After treatments and finally feeling confident nothing would go awry, he was back again and able to enjoy the excursion to its fullest. He netted the nicest smallmouth I’d ever caught so I was particularly thankful he made it. Thanks Rocky! May there be many, many more.
The hummingbirds at the cabin were always busy during the daylight hours. It made me wonder how they were doing at the ranch. Their season never lasts long enough no matter where you are. There were several other birds that were very skittish. One could hear them but seeing them was another matter. The loons were heard in the early morning hours and could be seen diving while we were fishing. They seemed to keep their distance, resurfacing several hundred yards from where they were last seen. A wise idea to stay away from us.
As expected, upon my return Ruby made a huge fuss. Luckily we were inside as it was so loud it sounded almost as though she was being beaten. Quite the contrary. She was just being Ruby with every square inch capable of wiggling doing just that. When she finally settled down she ran and got her ball, not letting me out of her sight. She was more than ready at bedtime to curl up on the bed to watch Gunsmoke. Soon she drifted off and was snoring. I followed suit. Everything’s back to normal.
See you next week…real good then.