This is turning into one bitter sweet Summer that's for sure. I haven't seen a Summer this bad since 2013 in many ways. It was actually a cool 89 degrees or so today a slight break from the mid 90 to 100 degree plus days we have had for the last month anyway, I noticed the drought monitor moved most of Missouri into the exceptionally dry status with a small part hitting the light drought level. Been a godsend for lessening fuel usage and getting ahead of the really pesky very bad weeds as far as mowing goes and much easier on the guys getting in multiple fields of hay but not great in the fodder and growing departments.
I have actually resorted to keeping hay out and available for all the animals full time more or less. I have to fork hay over the fence to the ram as his paddocks are getting too dried up to supply him with enough new green growth. I have taken to rotating the West pasture leaving it open for the sheep three out of four days and then letting the goats in there every forth day. The goats are the least of my worries though as they love hay and love heat. Goats are about the only critters that seem happy all the time right now... As happy as a goat can be anyway.
I have elected to basically ignore the old horse pasture this year. I mowed it regularly the last two years and have made a big dent in allowing the horse damage to repair itself but fuel costs are just too high this year. Some of those weeds are just going to get a year of peace from mower blades I guess.
Lately I have been musing on the hay levels I see around me. Every big operation seems to be adding more and more hay storage and buying land to run more cattle on. Hay levels seem out of this world as the last couple of years have produced bumper hay crops around here. Yet what I am not seeing are constant semi-trucks pulling flat beds loaded with bales heading for parts West. This is very odd as it has been missing for the last few years. Before if the Western States had their almost yearly droughts I would witness trains of bales being moved but not so recently. In fact I think the local herds are exploding in size. I thought last year the herds were decreasing but now I am finding out what actually decreased was the farmers moving the herds.
My current theory is raising cattle locally has now become more economically profitable than before as the Western herds have been forced to decrease. We maybe witnessing a new trend in all agricultural endeavors for the Continental US going forward. California especially has profited under artificial agricultural conditions for a century now. I have even had a couple of neighbors hint to me that the horse pasturage would make a nice cattle paddock off handedly.
Let the price of beef go up much more though I might put a few of my own down there.
As for the garden it is looking wonderful. The Melons are having some heat wilt problems with this darn Sun blazing down on them every day but they recover when the shade hits em. Only problem I am having is I think the high temps are causing the pollen to go sterile before the blooms can be pollinated. I have a lot of blooms but very little fruit setting which is concerning me somewhat. I know it isn't a water issue as the heavy mulch seems to be doing it's job but the Sun is harsh and we don't even seem to be allowed clouds right now let alone rain.
Hopefully things will change soon. The forecast doesn't seem to see any change in the near future but I am kinda missing all my ripe veggies right now.
Keep Prepping Everyone!!!
The fruit not setting; I'm having the same issue with my zucchini plants; lots of blossoms but very few zukes. In the next row I planted "Mexican squash," essentially a different cultivar of zucchini. Those are producing really well! Last year, it was exactly opposite. Go figure!
ReplyDeleteLiving in the desert, I find it incredible that vegetable plants can grow in 100*+ temps and 165* soil surface temps, but grow they do. I have zukes, cukes, tomatoes, corn, and usually melons. The leaves will wilt during the heat of the day, but amazingly, they recover as soon as the soil starts cooling. I water very early morning and after dark at night. This gives the plants the fortitude they need to deal with the heat. I didn't do melons this year, as I got a late start on the garden. I was inundated with ground squirrels this year. Putting in plants was doing nothing more than feeding the squirrels. I had to get them under control before planting. That set me back over a month. This is the kind of thing a prepper needs to learn BEFORE the SHTF!
We have dairy farms in our area, but they produce their own hay. I see "haywagons" on the freeway, but they're usually head out of the area; not in.
Pete - Like you said growing them doesn't seem to be a problem this year but the fruiting seems to be. We have been getting down to the 70's at night but the Sun is just merciless to them during the day and it's my Zucs and Cucs that seem to bear the brunt of it. Luckily my pest issues resolved themselves pretty quickly without much of my own input probably the only advantage to having a county hwy so close I guess.
DeleteI usually cannot plant a lot until late May due to rains, sometimes later but my metal ground cover under the mulch does allow me to get some stuff done earlier. Potatoes are the main crop I cannot grow early as the rains always kill em off.