Archive for the ‘Weather’ Category
November 8, 2011 – Early November Snow
Winter peeked its head in a bit early this winter. Thought it try to intrude on late fall a bit.
Although it was a good try, by afternoon, most of the snow was melted.
August 31, 2011 – Finally, a Bit of Rain
Although it’s not enough to replenish any soil moisture, it at least knocked the dust off everything and kept the plants going for a few more days
About 7/10 of an inch. A start?
August 29, 2011 – Parched August
The weather service has officially put our county in the “drought-stricken” category, up from “abnormally dry.” We’ve received less than .3 inches of rain in August and are at about 60 percent of the normal rainfall to date.
Cracks in the soil, ready for rain.
Of course, I don’t need this fancy NOAA map showing the rainfall deficit/surplus over the past three months. Looks like over the past three months we’re short 6-8 inches of rainfall from normal.
one year ago…”About those Eggs…”
July 19, 2011 – Cleanup Begins
OK, so this isn’t my greatest moment, but ‘ll share anyways.
These massive ruts are from getting the tractor unstuck. I was hauling branches out to the burn pile and was turning around with an empty wagon, on a part of the field not usually soft. You can see that I was in no manner near the bottom wet part of the pasture (and you can see my original unstuck path coming in on the upper right of the picture). At any rate, The JD 2510 broke through the sod and that was about it.
Descending into a realm of quagmire and muck. Once the initial rut started, the only way out was straight back, towards the low spot. It was the first time I’ve been on the farm that I buried the tractor. It’s a bit of a helpless feeling. Thankfully a neighbor stopped with his Bobcat by to see how we were doing as he was taking a break from cleaning up at his place. By a combination of using the loader bucket to push the tractor back a few feet at a time, we eventually got it close enough to solid ground that we could hook a chain up to it and pull it out.
I hadn’t realized that some branches the thickness of a man’s thigh had found their way into the adjacent field.
Unloading branches on one of the many bonfire piles.
July 18, 2011 – Damage in the Neighborhood
Now that we’ve had a chance to get our feet back under ourselves, we’ve toured the damage to our neighbors.
This is the barn, or what’s left of it, of a farm pretty much due west of us.
Another view.
This is the barn at the farm directly north of us, about 1/4 mile.
These are a couple of the brand new 300,000 bushel grain bins at the elevator in Haverhill, about 4 miles east of us.
Here are some of the old bins from the same place. I’m feeling very fortunate that due to the vagaries of the wind and landscape, all of our buildings survived. I’m also feeling good that all the new roofs I put on the outbuildings remain intact, at least for winds from the NW.
one year ago…”At the Waterfall”
July 11, 2011 – Maizy’s Storm Report
Oh boy, will my owners be surprised when they return from vacation in about a week!
First, they’ll have a hard time even getting in the driveway.
They’ll know from a mile or two away that the profile of their farm has changed – at least six of the white pines and spruces along the road had their tops snapped off and tossed into the gardens.
Another big spruce down by the propane tank.
Another top of a tree up by the propane tank.
The first few tops blown into the bottom garden and crushing a bean trellis.
More tops tossed in the middle garden.
Some more in the top garden.
Some more in the perennial flower garden.
I was afraid my doghouse would blow away, so I sought shelter under this car. My chain got caught under the tire, but in a panic, I was able to slip out of my collar and run away!
The place for relaxing on the patio is not so much now.
This stock tank received another top of a tree – guess it might be a used as a raised bed container now!
Wasn’t I cool to get my own picture in this one! I don’t think this tree understands that windbreak doesn’t mean to break in the wind!
The turbine was spared, just the top of this tree on some guy wires.
The area in the chicken yard is a mangled mess.
Two peach trees down here.
A big apple tree down here. I can’t count very well, but counted three peach trees, an apple, a cherry, and a plum tree down. They won’t be very happy about this. Only five days until they come home!
one year ago…”End of the Road”
June 7, 2011 – Hot Enough for Ya?
Although it doesn’t seem as bad as August and 96 degrees, three straight days in early June with 95+ is just a little too much, too early. Now, we could use some rain for the latest round of transplanting and seed sowing – and some south-facing grass is beginning to turn brown.
April 22, 2010 – Spring in Suspended Animation
Despite a couple of 85 degree plus Sundays in April, the rest of the month is just short of miserable. We should be in the mid-60′s by now, but it seems many days it struggles to reach 50.
Most everything seems to be in suspended animation. This asparagus is purple because of the cold and hasn’t shown appreciable growth in a week since it poked out.
Fruit tree buds, like these plums, are likewise, just holding steady and not advancing like they usually do. Last year the plum trees were in full bloom on April 14 – looks like this year could be two weeks or more behind last year’s blooming time.
Despite being the 8th warmest March on record on a global scale, we did not contribute to that warmth. There’s blue dots over us. April will likely be even much colder from average than March.
one year ago…”Thingamajig Thursday #205″
April 3, 2011 – 82 Degrees
Today was the first time in a long while that the thermometer passed 80 degrees.
Our bodies weren’t ready for it – the sultry, warm air made us feel like not doing much at all. We went for a walk around a small lake to enjoy the day. No getting used to it, however, – tomorrow it’s back to a high of 48.
one year ago…”Syruping Season Ends”
March 22, 2011 – First Thunderstorm Downpour of the Season
Last night the sirens went off for the first time of the season and some property was lost as a tornado packing 120 mph winds danced across a county south of Des Moines. For our part, all that landed on our farm was heavy rain and pea-sized hail.
This rain arranged a winter’s accumulation of dead pine needles and other debris into nice pine needle dunes as the water lapped off the driveway. It also took all the frost out of the ground and the earthworms did appear!
one year ago…”Paul Simon and Ali Farokhmanesh – Separated at Birth?”
February 13, 2011 – I’m Melting!
The cold snap has finally broken and we can once again wander outdoors without risking frostbite. Now, a couple of photos to show how fast the snow can go.
Here’s a view out our bedroom window Saturday morning.
And Sunday night. Pretty much only the drifts remain.
one year ago…”In the Bleak Midwinter”
February 1, 2011 – The Storm Brews
It’s cold!
Here’s some of the ice from the storm window looking out of the office.
We’ll see what tonight and tomorrow brings, but for now, the driveway is passable.
January 19, 2011 – Power of the Sun
This photo is a testament to the power of the sun. When I went out to do chores this morning, it was rather chilly at -3.
Even though it was subzero, the snow on top of the metal corn crib was melting and dripping down the side!
one year ago…”Home-made Solar Air Heater Quest Begins”
January 11, 2011 – Snow at Last
Finally, the snow did arrive, much tardy this season, on January 11.
Hey, hey hey looking out my front window (apologies to CCR).
