The scurs are buying more stock in American Motors based on the Weather Eye’s performance last week. Is Mother Nature shifting gears or will she suddenly throw it in reverse? Starting Thursday, mostly sunny with a good chance of evening rain. Highs in the low 80’s with lows in the low 60’s. Mostly sunny Friday with a fair chance of forenoon showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-80’s with lows in the mid-50’s. Sunny on Saturday with highs in the low 80’s with lows in the mid-50’s. Sunday, mostly sunny with a fair chance of evening showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the low 80’s with lows in the mid-50’s. Sunny on Monday with a modest chance of evening showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the low 80’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Tuesday, mostly sunny with a modest chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-80’s with lows in the low 60’s. Sunny on Wednesday with highs in the mid-80’s and lows in the upper 50’s. On August 15th we’ll be down to 14 hours of daylight, about where we were back on April 27th. The normal high for August 15th is 79 and the normal low is 59. With the cooler evening temps, the scurs will be opening the windows to give the air conditioner a well-deserved break.
The recent rainfall was a godsend and couldn’t have been scripted better, being gently spread over most of a day. Rainfall totals at the ranch were 1.63” and 2.07” in Bugtussle. What does this portend for the crop? Hard to say for sure just yet, although it should make it “less worse” as one sage observer liked to put it. Indeed, after last week, there were indications in some corn fields that the tip back everyone talks about was evident. Not severe but noticeable. Most soybeans still have some flowering left to do and, like the corn, the crop’s stature is shorter than what we’re accustomed to. That varies by location somewhat as I was in fields near Pemberton that were waist high. Some earlier rains when needed were likely the reason for that. Soybeans continue in the R5 stage and in the corn. We may start to see some denting starting later in the week on some earlier planted earlier maturing hybrids. The recent heat pushed this crop very hard. It’s not going to be the ’21 or ’22 crop, but it’s somewhat of a miracle it looks as good as it does.
Area gardens including the one at the ranch were all beneficiaries of the generous rain. Some of the plants at the ranch were marking time at best, maintaining but not progressing with the hot temperatures. The cucumbers in particular struggled, being planted in the small garden where the trees can suck up a lot of the moisture. Even being watered every day, by afternoon the vines would be wilting. After the rain, they look like they’ve caught their breath and continue to flower as though nothing ever happened. Where the rest of the vine crops were essentially strip tilled, they too were starting to slow down their expansion into areas outside the garden boundaries. With the rain, it should be like tossing gas on a fire. Ditto with the string beans. It was fortunate that last Thursday I was able to plant the fall radishes and a row of snap peas ahead of the Sunday rain. Like most things, timing is everything.
Speaking of timing, I was concerned my pasture spraying was too late this time around. The Canada thistles had reached 3+’ and were heading out in places. Getting adequate coverage in the heavier patches was a concern. I thought I’d calibrated the sprayer close to right and knew approximately what the output was. It concerned me when the thistles were taking their sweet time going down for the count after the application. Pale and contorted but not desiccated. Hot dry weather was a factor. I checked to see what kind of job I’d done and was relieved when looking at the blossoms and plumes that there was no live seed. Now after being rained on a few times, the thistles are brown both at home and at the kindly neighbors. There are weeds I don’t like, then there are thistles. Having maintained pastures for much of my life, they’re a mortal enemy. From my thistle controlling days as a youth, I have the scar left by a bean hook on my right index finger to prove it. Still have the bean hook too.
The birds in the backyard at the ranch have been making a subtle transition. There is becoming less bird song with each passing day. Last week there were wrens and cardinals singing almost constantly. This week, there are still some vocal cardinals, but the wrens seem to have suddenly gone silent, only heard from when one is scolded for being too close to their recently fledged young. The Baltimore orioles have become more sporadic in their appearances since I returned from Canada a few weeks back. Probably doesn’t help that there’s frequently been a nasty looking big black wasp in the jelly feeder. There has been a male orchard oriole I’ve seen regularly, but otherwise, we’re saving money on jelly. The hummingbirds haven’t been as numerous as they were earlier. There are so many floral choices for them here that it should come as no surprise. I did purchase a little extra sugar for their migration. I’ve been pleased with how faithful the group of goldfinches have been this summer. The bold yellow males brighten even the darkest days, making one wish that summer would never end.
Poppy had to stay cooped up a few nights last week with the Freeborn Co. Fair on. Her love of people hadn’t wavered as she was ready for attention and to play once out of the kennel again. Fortunately, she was able to help in the garden for long stretches some days, with the term “help” being used loosely. It has been good for her to learn how to stay close rather than wandering off, which she often likes to do. With all the careless and inattentive drivers on the loose, it’s important to embed the habit of sticking by our side in her repertoire. Keeping her focused and well exercised helps. Our latest “go to” routine includes spraying the hose with Poppy chasing the water as it falls to the ground. Several of our dogs have been huge fans of playing with the water from the garden hose. It’s intensive exercise and watching those stubby little Corgi legs churning at warp speed is worth the price of admission.
See you next week…real good then.