Be Careful
Be careful what you wish for. You just might get it.
We dearly wanted to improve the muddy situation that our horses face during the wet spring meltdown. Last fall we excavated an improved drainage swale, cleared out the overgrown drainage ditch along our southern property border, buried drain tile along the uphill borders of the paddocks, and applied several loads of lime screenings on the hill around the barn for improved footing.
We have been anxiously awaiting the thaw to see if our improvements worked the way we hoped. That thaw is almost complete now, and we are standing by to see how quickly the soil dries out.
What we couldn’t control was the amount of moisture we would be forced to deal with by the weather. Our mild winter left us with a below average snow cover and we have been without precipitation for over a week. The effectiveness of our improvements is hard to gauge because the ground is already too dry!
There is still plenty of time to receive some spring rain, but for the time being, we are experiencing what the meteorologists are phrasing as “pre-drought conditions.”
We wanted dryer conditions for the paddock footing, but this is not the way we would like it to occur.
It is interesting that the changing climate seems to be putting us at risk for dryer, drought-like conditions overall, while at the same time unleashing more copious dousings of precipitation from individual storm events. We get too much all at once and then not enough in between.
I am a bit concerned about how that will impact our intentions of growing hay. Over the last two years we have been unable to get more than one cutting in a season, because the spring and early summer have been too wet, and the rest of the growing season has been too dry. We haven’t had enough growth after the first cut to allow for a second batch of bales.
This year we are starting out dry. Who knows what we’ll get in the months ahead. I’m hesitant to wish for more moisture for fear of then getting more than we can handle. Wishes are not to be waved about carelessly. We should be clear about what we want and what we don’t want.
What are the rules again? I can’t wish for more wishes, but can I wish for a precise outcome? Not less than we need, and not more than we need.
Be careful what you wish for.
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Relative Something 
Strangely enough, we have been having early heat waves here, much like your situation in a way. You see, heat without the leaves on the trees is unhealthy, far too extreme too fast. Lots of blossom, though. Unfortunately, a sudden cold spell could destroy all its benefits over night. We already have been experiencing strange cold drying winds in the early morning. My father always warned of nature’s wrath.
But, let’s also focus on our own ingenuity and resilience… you, I can see, are made for this life – a renewed version of all that has ever been.
Ian Rowcliffe
March 14, 2015 at 9:47 am
I like the choice of focusing on our ingenuity and resilience. What can we do, but adapt to the challenges nature presents? Granted, it is hard to deal as individuals with the climate changes brought on by the actions of mass populations striving mindlessly for unsustainable “progress.”
johnwhays
March 15, 2015 at 10:25 am