The scurs and the Weather Eye were pleasantly surprised by the Sunday rainfall over much of the area. Have our fortunes changed, or will we need a diaper change if Mother Nature doesn’t cooperate? Starting Wednesday, sunny with a slight chance of an afternoon thunderstorm. Highs in the upper 80’s with lows in the upper 60’s. Thursday, mostly sunny with a good chance of a thunderstorm by evening. Highs in the upper 80’s with lows in the mid-60’s. Mostly sunny on Friday with a modest chance of a forenoon thundershower. Highs in the low 80’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Saturday, mostly sunny with highs in the low 80’s and lows in the upper 50’s. Mostly sunny on Sunday with a slight chance of thunderstorms by late afternoon. Highs in the mid-80’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Monday, mostly sunny with highs in the low 80’s with lows in the low 60’s. Partly sunny for Tuesday with a modest chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid-80’s with lows in the low 60’s. The Full Moon for June falls on the 24th. We will have lost 13 seconds of daylight from the summer solstice. The normal high for the 24th is 80 and the normal low is 61. The scurs are looking forward to fresh strawberries and whipped cream. Their recently purchased Jersey cow should aid in this endeavor.
The Full Moon for the month is on the 24th and, as intimated, goes by the Full Strawberry Moon. June is definitely strawberry month here in MN as it is across much of the USA. There are some good berries available prior to June, but the best ones are arguably those grown locally during the month. In Europe this was sometimes known as The Rose Moon. I’d rather eat strawberries methinks. Both the Ojibwe and Sioux actually agreed that this was also the Strawberry Moon or The Moon when the June Berries are good. At the ranch we usually know it as the Full Lawnmowing Moon, although this summer, mowing has slowed to a more leisurely pace than some years. This June it has become The Full Watering Moon.
Crops were beginning to show the effect of too dry and too warm up until Sunday’s welcome rainfall. Where substantial rains fell, both corn and soybeans responded almost overnight. Corn that had been curled during the heat seemed to exhale with the rainfall and Monday’s cooler temps. Soybeans also seemed to be marking time and, while they were flowering, the plants were growing at a slower than normal pace. The rain made the rows suddenly puff out and look like progress was again being made. The cooler temps helped keep the evaporation level down while buying a little more time before the crop needs another drink. Were the corn and soybean crops hurt by the heat? Overall, on the corn side, not much. The maximum daily water use is still a few weeks off and tasseling should be in the July 7th -14th range depending somewhat upon GDU’s. The soybeans were harmed very little. The soybean crop here is made in August.
Gardening this past week, I was amazed how much moisture there still was prior to the rain while planting a couple astilbe and a coral bell. There was good moisture yet at 4” and below. It still didn’t help for germinating some of the vine crop seeds or four o’clocks. Watering was necessary and even that was a guess about the amount needed. Soil in the top couple inches was very dry. It seemed on those hot days the watering done the night before had generally disappeared well before midafternoon. Eventually the seeds came around, although they came even more quickly after the rain. Something about rainfall is still hard to beat when it comes to gardening. The wild turkey was placated by my peace offering of shell corn. He left the garden alone for much of the week, despite my feeling like I’d just paid ransom to a feathered terrorist.
The feathered friends have increased in scope again. Apparently, the new hatch of orioles has appeared at the feeders. Jelly consumption is up again and the sightings of immature birds and hearing their calls seems more than coincidental. Hummingbirds also are common, but numbers are hard to determine. They enjoy roosting on the tomato cages in between feeding at the nectar feeders. Then off to who knows where afterwards. A few goldfinches show up now and then. A chickadee suffered the same fate Tuesday morning. Unfortunately, the house sparrows have usually emptied the feeders prior to their arrival. Another reason those rats with wings aren’t welcome in our yard or the barn, either one.
The Back to the 50’s car show was back on again over the weekend. The MSRA honored our registrations from two years ago, so there was no excuse. The weather was a factor in our choice of days to attend. Saturday, while usually the busiest day of the event, had the most appealing weather forecast. Prior obligations left another party locked into Sunday, so my copilot and I decided to brave it, opting for Saturday instead. Memories of driving home in a 3” Sunday downpour a few years back still lingered in my mind, as did drying out the wet mess inside the car afterwards.
We took off from the ranch about 7 a.m. Saturday morning. Traffic was light and the overdrive in the Silver Hawk kept pace nicely. There were several thumbs up signs from other drivers while making our way north. We were undecided about which way we’d come into the fairgrounds when we spotted another car, a blue and white ’56 Ford ahead of us. “Hey, I know, let’s follow them!” We did and they took 35E, about the same route as I remembered. Up until they pulled off and went to a gas station that is. The guy and gal got out of the vehicle. She was all dolled up in a poodle skirt and needed to use a restroom badly. Unfortunately for her there was none to be found! OK…so much for that idea.
Hopped back in the car and out onto 35E. Exited on Randolph, caught Snelling, went past the backed-up Como exit, whipped a U-ie at the main gate to the State Fair, came down the Como ramp and voila! In like Flynn. My copilot spotted a great place to park on the east side of the Colosseum. Shade in the a.m. by the Miracle of Birth building, then afternoon shade from the Colosseum. We then wandered off for some breakfast. Within a few minutes I received a text that Bemidji Bill and his ’38 Plymouth coupe were parked just a few spaces from us. Hadn’t seen him in two years, so it was a special treat. The entire day couldn’t have gone much better. The crowd swelled as the afternoon wore on, so there was lots of people watching to do. Lots of classic automobiles too, all manufactured from ’64. Everything from Chevies, to Fords, to Mopar’s, to Cadillacs and, of course, Studebakers. It just felt good to be back.
See you next week…real good then.