Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Meanwhile, Back on the Ranch

It has been a very dry year around here, so far. The Bag Lady was out in the pasture the other day, and tried to take some pictures of just how bad the conditions are. She discovered it isn't easy to photograph dryness accurately! This patch of grass gives an indication - at this time of year, it should be lush and green. This looks more like a picture taken in August after a hot, dry spell: (please note the concern on the face of your tour guide, the exalted Princess.)


Here the Princess points out that this area should be lush and green, not dry and brown:

Here is an area where the cows walk daily:

See the dust they are kicking up as they go through the gate?


The clouds threaten, but don't produce much. The cows have resorted to kicking dirt onto their backs to help get rid of the flies!


Average rainfall for June around here is something in the neighbourhood of 60 mm - this year we had 6 mm.


It finally took to raining yesterday. When the Bag Lady got up this morning, there was an inch in the rain gauge. (Please click on the picture to enlarge it if you would like to actually be able to see the rain in the gauge...)


That's more rain than what fell in both May and June! And, apparently, the rain is going to continue through today and tomorrow.

The Bag Lady's rain barrel is full!


And her garden seems to have sprung up several inches overnight (she knows that isn't true, but it looks much happier than it did a few days ago!)


Now, as long as the rain knows when to quit.....

24 comments:

messymimi said...

Knowing when to quit -- that is the problem we seem to be having around here.

The south Louisiana swampy areas used to get steady rain all through the year. Now, we stay dry for weeks, then get huge downpours that don't seem to know when to stop. Then it dries out again.

I hope you get just enough rain, and regularly.

the Bag Lady said...

Messymimi - Thanks!
We certainly need a lot of rain, but it doesn't have to all come at once in a huge downpour that will wash away the topsoil!

Unfortunately, I don't seem to have any control over the weather, dang it all!

Hilary said...

What a relief that must be. I'll bet the cows (and the Bag Lady) did a little happy dance. :)

Leah J. Utas said...

Princess did a fine job as a tour guide. Give her a scratch behind the ears from me for a job well done.
The pasture is scary. I'm glad you got some rain. I hope there's more on the way and it's well spaced so there's no flooding.
We've had some rain here, too. It's good.

Emily said...

Oh wow, I didn't realize you were lacking in the rain department as well! I completely sympathize with the dry, cracked ground- we're been trying to get grass to grow in the bare spots in our yard and it's just not gonna happen when the ground is so dry & cracked. We can use the sprinkler all day but you know as well as I do that nothing replaces rain water!

the Bag Lady said...

Hilary - were you spying on us? Cows look funny when they happy-dance, don't they? :)

dfLeah - I shall certainly scratch Princess behind the ears for you. She loves that! Glad to hear that you are getting some rain, too.

Emily - I didn't realize it was dry down there, too! And you're right, the sprinkler helps, but it just doesn't replace a good soaking rain!

Ann (bunnygirl) said...

We were glad to finally get a little rain, too. There were big cracks in the ground in the lots that weren't getting watered, and I was starting to worry about the new trees the city planted along the bayous.

I love your tour guide. She should give tours more often.

Reb said...

Lovely tour Princess. Glad the rain has come, it is here too. I just hope it knows when to stop.

Aleta said...

Your dog really does look like she's pointing out the grass. New Orleans has been dry too. Finally, we're getting some rain. But to tell you the truth, it makes me nervous to get any kind of rain during the hurricane season!

Hmmm, what's a rain barrel for?

Missicat said...

It's seems to be a strange summer, weatherwise, in a lot of places! It had actually been cool and not too humid here (yes, D.C. in summer!). So far have only had 2 days over 90 degrees which is unheard of. Not that I am complaining!!!

the Bag Lady said...

BG - I'll try to encourage the tour guide to work a little more often. She tends to have her own agenda, though!

Reb - I hope the rain doesn't decide to set in and stay all summer! It makes it hard to put up hay if it's raining all the time!

Aleta - I'd be nervous all the time, living in New Orleans!
I collect rain water to use on my houseplants, and the plants on my covered deck. It's better for them than the well-water.

Missicat - the weather has been strange, hasn't it? Global warming? Maybe not. I tend to think more in terms of climate change.

Anonymous said...

I'm wondering why you don't have a rain gauge that measures in centimeters...
But I'm glad you are finally getting some rain!
The clouds are threatening here, but so far it's staying dry.

the Bag Lady said...

kcinnova - we used to have one that measured in both, but it cracked, so it was measuring in neither! That, plus the fact that we're old, and grew up with the metric system, and can never figure out how the hell much a mm IS, anyway!

Sagan said...

Gah, lots of rain! Hope it's not breeding mosquitoes for you.

The Princess is an excellent tour guide :)

the Bag Lady said...

Sagan - we had some mosquitoes before it rained, so I'm sure we'll have more now! Damn it.

MizFit said...

PLEASE SEND THIS WAY.

the Toddler and I have been having many...tussles per day just because it is 100 degrees outside.

mama ornery :)

the Bag Lady said...

Miz - it seems to have settled in here and doesn't want to move away - you might have to bring the toddler up here for a visit!
(Apparently we HAD the tornado part around here last night somewhere....)

JavaChick said...

I think we've been getting all your rain...I'd be happy to share, honest! My poor plants need some actual sunshine.

the Bag Lady said...

Thanks for the offer, JavaChick, but we have enough for now! Need a little recovery time for it to soak in.

Charlotte said...

Man, I'm having garden envy now! Your plants look fantastic! Ours still look pretty stumpy despite sending the kids out to water them every day. Oh wait... I think I just found the problem;)

the Bag Lady said...

Charlotte - that cracked me up! I'm sure your garden looks much better than mine (gardens need kids almost as much as they need water!)

Lucas said...

Rain NEVER knows when to quit. It's feast or famine, right? :)

solarity said...

In the first picture Princess looks like she's saying "It's not my fault! I didn't pee on it!"

Those pictures look like last summer here. I hope you get some more rain later.

Mary Anne in Kentucky

the Bag Lady said...

Lucas - that's so true! We have now had 2 inches. The sun is shining right this moment, but there is another huge black cloud creeping over it as I type....

Mary Anne in Kentucky - Princess does look a little guilty, doesn't she?
We surely need more rain, but I hope this stuff gets a chance to soak in first.