Rain, Rain....Go Away???

So far, it has rained every day this month…

I was standing at the feedstore, peering at the sky, trying to figure out if I would need the tarp to protect the feed from rain on the way home. I still had a number of stops, but the radar looked clear….hmmmm I was wondering what I should do while the feedstore fellas loaded the truck.

 Mrjim appeared on the dock and we got to talking about (of all things) the weather.  “Waaaallll, girl…I tell ya…I could really take a break in all this rain! Yesssir, a break in all this rain! I’m tired of it….I got so much stuff to do!”  misterjim began to list the things he needed to do and couldn’t because of the rain.

He and helper-dude chuckled when I involuntarily gasped at his statement and said “oh, golly!  I’m kinda scared to say that out loud.  But, yeah, a break in the weather would be nice.”  I began to make a mental list of all the things WE couldn’t get done because of the rain. 

We got through the cold snap, the dry spell and now we’re trying to wait out the rains.  There are a whole new set of “issues” with the warm wet weather that is spring. (I think I’ve done this one before…check out last May…)

The grass is growing with amazing vigor.  This is great for grazing, and even better for the hay farmers out there.  Although, they will be praying for warm, DRY weather in just a few weeks.  The great grass allows for some great gains for those calves and lambs that were born earlier this year.

Those crops already in the ground are growing well, too.  It’s all those crops that need to go in the ground that are beginning to worry folks.  I saw one of the neighbors out checking the moisture in one of his cornfields…too wet means planting can’t happen.  That delay puts everything behind and affects the timetable for the rest of the season.

Here on the hill, our worries are not so huge in scope, but worries none the less.

Too much water on the tender strawberries cause injury to the fruits which then mold and can damage the rest of the crop.  They are also really gross to attempt to pick!

The mild winter weather, coupled with the present WET weather, have the potential to create the “perfect storm” for a population explosion in the pest and parasite concerns here on the hill.  Just yesterday, I noticed one of the lambs acting “off”.  Sure enough, pale eyes to indicate an anemia problem…a sure sign of parasites.  Can you guess what JOB #1 is today?  Yep, working the lambs!

The beetles and slugs, and caterpillars and grasshoppers are already making their presence known in the vegetable crops.  I’m pretty sure that hand-to-bug combat is going to last all summer!

The moisture has caused all sorts of mushrooms to pop up all over the farm.  While they are very interesting looking, they shouldn’t be eaten.  I don’t know if mushrooms have any effect on anything…but, they are EVERYWHERE!

All in all, the changes in the weather just mean we need to learn to be flexible and thankful for what we have.

Although, I must admit…we all sound a little like Goldilocks….”this is too wet….this is too dry….this is too….”

But, looking out the window, I think today is going to be “just right!”