Fencelines (269)
The scurs kept the snow away until the weekend at least. Are we out of the woods yet or are we still following the bread crumbs? Starting Wednesday, mostly sunny with highs in the mid 70s and lows in the lower 50s. Partly cloudy for Thursday with a slight chance of evening showers or thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 70s and lows in the mid 50s. Partly cloudy on Friday with an increasing chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 70s and lows in the upper 50s. Saturday, mostly cloudy with a good chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the low 70s and lows in the upper 50s. Mostly cloudy Sunday with a good chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 60s and lows in the mid 40s. Monday, mostly cloudy with a chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 50s and lows in the upper 40s. Mostly cloudy Tuesday with highs in the low 60s and lows in the mid 40s. The normal high for May 20th is 71 and the normal low is 50. The scurs may be ready to put the toboggan away for the year.
Spring has been a test of one’s patience if you’re a farmer. The snowfall that blanketed the area continues to leave its mark. Fields have been slow to dry although the temperatures and lack of wind have also been factors. Some have been determined to try fieldwork only to discover too late that fields have simply not dried very quickly. It is rather remarkable given the dry conditions we faced coming out last fall that our soil profile has been completely recharged in the top 5’. The small acreage of corn that was planted before the snow will likely emerge this week. Small grains have emerged slightly unevenly while the alfalfa that was underseeded in some of those fields appears to have caught very nicely. This is good news for those who lost stands of alfalfa this past winter and spring. Even though it likely won’t make up for the hay that was lost, it’s still better than the alternative.
Wetlands have also benefitted from the large amounts of precipitation thus far. They too are at capacity and the wildlife is reaping the rewards. Ducks and geese are busy nesting and deer can easily find water once again. The western chorus frogs crank it up every night and more recently the toads have begun their trilling to add to the wonderful sleeping music. Aside from hearing rain on the rooftop, few things will put me to sleep faster than listening to these little amphibians chirping away after dark.
Garden plans have been just that so far. Even the small garden that usually is dry by now remains damp on the surface in spots. The main garden had a layer of ice on it Saturday morning and the sleet, snow pellets and freezing rain that passed through later that morning did nothing to bolster any remaining enthusiasm I might have. Hopefully the breezy condition from Monday and Tuesday will move it along so something can be accomplished soon. One can live off the fresh produce from it most of the summer and the waiting is the hardest part.
It was a watershed week watching and listening to the birds this past week at the ranch as well as at the kindly neighbors’ At home, there were still some juncos on the 7th although they left shortly after that. A Harris’ sparrow made it on the 9th and has been hanging with the white-crowned sparrows daily since. The orioles came that same day. The oriole nectar feeder bit the dust last fall so a new one was procured to replace it. It was filled and hung up at lunchtime and by 5:30 p.m., the first male oriole had already found it. A yellow warbler crossed my path the morning of the 10th as I made my way to check the black cutworm trap. Later that afternoon while repairing fence at the kindly neighbors, a bluebird could be heard calling in the rolling oak pasture. A house wren was heard at the ranch on the 12th and the first hummingbird of the season at the ranch was desperately trying to catch up with the near horizontal oriole feeder due to strong winds on the 13th. A robin’s nest with 3 eggs in it was also found on top of the boom box in the barn. It must enjoy classic rock on Power 96. The icing on the cake was the first indigo bunting of the season Tuesday morning, in stark contrast to the dozens of yellow goldfinches.
The lawn finally decided to come to life at least in places despite the generally cool spring. It was especially lush where the dogs had been using it as their personal bathroom as well as in the ditch where nutrients are easy to come by. Mowing it the first time is an adventure. Getting the aging mowers and mower operator limbered up first always takes some doing. The ditch usually takes priority as the road cut is a challenge. One never knows when the next gully washer is going to fill it with water so mowing requires a watercraft license. The grass in the bottom was about the consistency of canned spinach. It gunked up the deck something fierce and caused several stoppages of play in order to de-gunk it. All in all it got done and the finished product was a definite improvement.
The Border Collies definitely seem to enjoy mowing lawn more than we humans do. When you approach the lawnmower, they get all excited and run around frantically. Once you’re seated and hit the ignition, the tire biting commences and when the blades are engaged, walking back and forth at a safe distance so the mower doesn’t get away becomes their focus. It’s great exercise for them and while they’re tired afterwards, it’s a happy tired.
See you next week…real good then.
The scurs went out on a limb last week predicting snow and the snow broke the limb off. Will we see any more encore performances from Old Man Winter or was that the last of his escapades for awhile? Starting Wednesday, mostly cloudy with a good chance for showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 60’s and lows near 50. Thursday, mostly cloudy with moderate chance of showers and thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 60’s and lows in the upper 40’s. Mostly cloudy becoming partly cloudy for Friday with a modest chance of an overnight shower or thunderstorm. Highs in the mid 60’s and lows in the mid 40’s. Partly cloudy on Saturday with a slight chance of a shower or thunderstorm. Highs in the mid 50’s and lows in the upper 30’s. Mostly sunny becoming partly cloudy for Sunday with a slight chance of a shower or thunderstorm. Highs near 60 and lows near 40. Mostly sunny Monday with highs in the upper 60’s and lows around 50. Partly cloudy Tuesday with a slight chance of a shower or thunderstorm. Highs in the low 70’s and lows in the low 50’s. The normal high for May 12th is 68 and the normal low is 47. The scurs will be scouting around for the mother of all gifts for Mother’s Day gift in the meantime.
What a bizarre week for weather! You know you’re in trouble when the May snowfall total is more than double that of April and are surpassed only by the March totals for the winter. All told there was 15” of snow at the ranch. The only trouble was due to emergency circumstances, the snow board could not be used to properly gauge the liquid equivalent precipitation. We still measured 1.23” the gauge. At the SROC where snowfall was about 9.4”, they tallied 1.48” of liquid equivalent precipitation so we’re probably way shy on our measurement at the ranch if the snow/water ratio is the same. All one can say is there was a lot of water in it judging by the tree limbs down and shed roofs collapsed by the weight. This has also makes some kind of a record for driving on bad roads. Seems like about the 5th month straight where snow and ice have been the order of the day.
What does this portend for corn that’s in the ground? Time will tell but no horror stories yet. Luckily not much was planted as an overall percentage of the acres. Alfalfa survival remains a bigger concern on the few acres it still occupies. Much of it appears in poor condition which should come as no surprise. Some of the stands were aging and there have been two dry falls to make matters worse. Couple that with some encouragement by people who should know better to take late fall cuttings and it’s a wonder alfalfa survives at all. However, it is easy to overlook the fact it still hasn’t warmed up much. Some of these fields were snow covered yet this past weekend. So far at the SROC there were only 15.5 GDU’s accumulated as of May 5th. It would be a good idea to assess these fields thoroughly before making any knee-jerk reactions.
On the bird front, the white-crowned sparrows are mixed in among the white-throated sparrows. The two species are similar in appearance although when one remembers the white throat is an easy field mark to distinguish between the two. A rose-breasted grosbeak was a recent addition Tuesday. On the pond, there have still been plenty of ring-necked ducks, blue-winged teal, mallards and northern shovelers to keep one occupied. Keeping an eye on the wood duck house to see if it’s occupied. With all the recent precipitation, it’s well out in the water so it’ll take a trip out there with the waders on to see. The other wood duck house has shown signs of activity although we’re not quite sure what. The last several years it has been home to kestrels so will be interesting to see if they’re back. The rooster pheasant was parading around the lawn with his most recent conquest, a flashy, sleek little hen who followed him everywhere.
It’s been tempting to shed the winter plumage and finally shave for the summer. It’s also been tempting to remove the tree wrap from all the small trees in the yard. Seems each time those thoughts cross my mind, it snows again. One of these days though it will be done snowing. Luckily the grass has grown to the point that the bunnies should be able to turn their attention to that rather than the trees. Some new razor blades are probably in order for my face. On the topic of blades, the lawnmowers need attention before too long. Parts of the lawn will need mowing soon, after the snow piles melt that is.
Vista’s noted Swedish astronomer paid me a visit last week but alas I was not in. He did the next best thing though and left me some Cliff’s Notes on what to look for in the night sky in May. Lots of planetary goings on including Saturn rising in the southeastern sky about sunset. Later in the month we should see a tight grouping at dusk the last week in the month including Venus, Mercury and Jupiter. Jupiter is lower in the sky each night and Venus is a little higher each night. Venus should be in the northwest sky. Venus and Jupiter are both very bright, not unlike the noted Swedish astronomer.
Mother’s Day is upon us and it looks like we’ll be spending it with Mom as we always have. It was gratifying this Sunday to see some house finches coming to the “Edna’s Special” window feeder at the care center where my mom is staying. It took a while for them to find it but they came through. It was almost surreal as brother Roger played guitar for her as she watched the birds, smiled and kept time to the music. After spending many hours at the care center the past 4 months, it has been eye opening to see the residents light up at the smallest acknowledgement. It’s also been disheartening to see that some of them seldom if ever have visitors. Pretty sad commentary on us as a society and perhaps indicative we’ve become “too busy” keeping up with people on social media and lord knows what else. Granted, care centers are generally not fun places to hang out, but they are a lot more fun when someone comes to visit. You might be surprised if you take the time.
See you next week…real good then.
After the snow left, again, the weather turned a tad nicer than the scurs had predicted. How will the predictions compare this week? Starting Wednesday, your May Basket could be slushy. Cloudy with a chance of accumulating snow. Highs near 40 and lows in the lower 30’s. Mostly cloudy on Thursday with a chance of rain and/or snow. Highs in the lower 40’s and lows in the low 30’s. Same thing for Friday with highs once again in the lower 40’s and lows in the mid 30’s. Cloudy and slightly warmer for Saturday with a continued chance of rain. Highs in the upper 40’s and lows in the upper 30’s. Sunday, mostly cloudy with a lesser chance of rain. Warmer with highs in the mid 50’s and lows in the low 40’s. Monday and Tuesday should get us back to partly cloudy skies with a slight chance of rain. Highs in the mid 60’s and lows in the low 50’s. The normal high for May 1st is 64. The normal high for St. Patrick’s Day is 40. The normal low for May 1st is 42. The normal low for April 8th is 32. The scurs are convinced their thermostat is broken. That or someone keeps flipping the calendar back and is having a good laugh about it.
Despite the cold and wet conditions, some fieldwork was accomplished over the weekend. It was however not widespread or very long-lived. A small amount of corn has been planted particularly in areas of lighter textured soil. There were fields worked down in anticipation of planting Monday only to be rained on overnight Sunday. Anhydrous ammonia, bulk fertilizer spreading and rock picking have been the order of the day for most. Fields remain just a hair too wet in many cases with some black areas apparent particularly after the overnight. Some found them wet enough when performing some of the aforementioned actions to wait before doing more fieldwork. The calendar still said April 28th, not May 28th, and given the way this spring is behaving, the key is planting once and making it count. There may not be another opportunity without taking a severe yield penalty.
So why are fields staying so wet? It’s no secret that we’ve been cold. How cold? Highs were in the upper 30’s as late as the 23rd and 24th, with the snow on the ground the 23rd, soil surface being frozen several time last week. Couple that with lots of cloudy, damp days. I recorded measurable precipitation on 17 out of 30 days for the month. and it shouldn’t come as any surprise things are in the shape they’re in. Yes, but don’t we have all this tile now that should help? It helps; however, we also have recorded 6.3” of precipitation for the month of April at the ranch. Unfortunately tile can’t make the wind blow or the sun shine. Check the weed growth. We’re just starting to see some of the early emerging species such as giant ragweed and lambsquarters. Tree buds are also a clue. Typically by corn planting time we see wild plums in bloom. This spring/winter is a throwback to the good ol’ days. Those tales your grandpa told you were true. Patience, grasshopper.
The garden at the ranch is in the same category as the planting progress in area fields. I look longingly at the small garden on the south facing slope, thinking that one day it will be fit, only to see moisture still at the soil surface. To add insult to injury, a robin was using some of the mud from the garden for a nest being constructed nearby. Seeds are ordered although when they arrive and are planted are anybody’s guess. There are several things including winter radishes and snap peas that can be planted in the summer for a fall crop, so not to worry. The rhubarb is progressing though, the warm days finally allowing actual leaves to be detected from the sliding glass door. Putting in some replacement trees had to satisfy my need to plant something, the muddy soil under sod providing a clue about the soil moisture status.
The warmth did green the grass up, and that has made everyone at least think that spring may possibly be here to stay. While the snow may sour everyone’s attitude temporarily, it won’t stay long and we can get back to more positive thinking. The arrival of new birds seems to convince me that the sky is not falling, at least not yet. After hearing about fox sparrows from the kindly neighbors, there was one in our yard too on the 25th. The redpolls they mentioned were here as well although they apparently split sometime over the weekend. They had a good run of about 3 months, their longest stay in recent memory. There are still a few juncos remaining though, apparently thinking there may be something to eat when the snow arrives. They’ve actually been eating from the feeders as opposed to ground feeding which is a little unusual. Barn swallows and tree swallows arrived almost simultaneously at the ranch on April 26th. White-throated sparrows were spotted that morning, so we’re getting closer to on schedule. A brown thrasher was also heard, although not actually seen until the 30th. Not unusual as they’re secretive and nearly as talented at hiding as the little fat buddies.
The resident rooster pheasant has continued to amuse us and some visitors alike. A friend from South Dakota was picking up some sheep to take to a show and happened by when the rooster was crowing on the edge of the lawn. We still think the rooster is a descendant of Little Jerry as he struts his stuff while dressed to kill in his breeding plumage to attract the hens. Every once in a while a hen can be seen slinking along the pasture fence then in a sudden burst of speed running as fast as they can to his lair in the plum and sumac thicket. You’d think they’d be wise to his ways by now.
See you next week…real good then.
The scurs were sure precipitation would continue only they weren’t sure what form it would take. All they knew is most of it would be a four letter word. Will April go out like a lamb or a lion? Starting Wednesday, mostly cloudy with an increasing chance of rain in the afternoon. Highs in the middle 40s and lows in the upper 20s. Mostly sunny on Thursday with the highs in the upper 40’s and lows in the middle 30s. Partly cloudy Friday with highs in the upper 60s and lows in the lower 40s. Partly cloudy and warmer on Saturday with a slight chance of an evening shower. Highs in the upper 60s and lows in the upper 40s. Partly cloudy again for Sunday with a chance of an evening shower or thunderstorm. Highs near 70 and lows in the low 50s. Partly cloudy Monday with a chance of a morning shower or thunderstorm. Highs in the upper 60s and lows in the upper 40s. Mostly sunny with a chance of rain on Tuesday. Highs in the upper 60’s and lows near 50. The normal high for April 30th is 64 and the normal low is 42. We will see over 14 hours of daylight on the 27th, roughly the same as we’ll see on August 4th. The scurs are thinking Old Man Winter’s days may be numbered.
The Full Moon for the month falls on the 25th and goes by several names. The most common is the Full Pink Moon, named for the pinks that flower in the forests and woodlands. It also is known as the Full Sprouting Grass Moon and the Full Egg Moon. The Ojibwe knew this as the Broken Snowshoe Moon and by the Sioux as The Moon of Greening Grass. At the ranch we’re going by The Shedding Border Collie or Change the Vacuum Cleaner Bag Moon.
This past week was another wet cold one. I’m convinced that snowpack in Canada is actually a glacier. Winter has worn out its welcome to be sure. We have however recharged our soils to the point that we are at or above our normal levels for April 15 in the top 5’ of soil, which is around 10”. The April 15th measurement was 9.2” in the top 5’ at the SROC. Since that time we’ve accumulated over 1.5” of precipitation so we actually should be getting close to field capacity. That seemed to be borne out by the puddling that was starting to be evident before the snow covered the fields back up once again on Monday night. For the month at the ranch, we have recorded 5.94” of precipitation. We have been fortunate that the rains have generally come in smallish, measured amounts, minimizing the amount of runoff. All things considered, we should have adequate moisture to run for a couple months without substantial rainfall.
The slow green-up on area pastures means more pressure on an already tight hay supply. The hay is also coming to life slowly and there are few signs that alfalfa has broken dormancy yet. That’s probably a good thing as last Saturday’s low of 19 degrees probably wouldn’t have done it any favors. The lateness of the spring has added an additional burden in that some who were considering planting small grains are looking at the calendar and deciding to forego that option. That will add to the present shortage of bedding and press livestock producers to look for alternatives such as corn stalks or soybean stubble.
Around the ranch, spring has been struggling to show its face. There are still some signs it will eventually get here. During the middle of the week, a wood thrush appeared in the yard. Due to the rusty brown color at first glance the thought was brown thrasher. The tail however wasn’t long and the bird simply wasn’t big enough. For whatever reason, other birds in the yard were very rude to the lone stranger and within a few minutes it was gone. More newcomers to the trees included yellow-bellied sapsuckers. These woodpeckers were much maligned in the old days, with many of them being shot on sight by orchard owners. Their habit of drilling holes in parallel groupings in trees, eating the sap and the insects attracted to it makes them unique. One can understand why their activity didn’t set well while further research has since indicated they do little actual harm to the tree.
The weather being too ugly for much of anything else gave me time to clean out the bluebird houses. Have seen no bluebirds yet or any tree swallows yet for that matter. Last year by this time the tree swallows had been here nearly a month. The first planted corn had emerged too. Of course, in order for swallows to survive they need insects, primarily of the flying type. There are reports of an occasional mosquito so hopefully they will soon be on the way. The presence of mosquitoes is a signal it’s time to start the heartworm medications for Fudgie and Ruby. The robins also continue to struggle. There are earthworms on the pasture’s south facing slope, when it warm enough and not covered with snow. They continue to subsist on the crabapples that are becoming shorter and shorter in supply.
It’s tough to think about mowing lawn or gardening this year after being covered with snow every few days or the ground freezing solid. Still, there are signs that we may eventually be able to salvage something. The rhubarb made it through in spite of the drought, helped by some watering before it was put to bed last fall. While their first leaves looking like clenched fists are just below the surface yet, they’re posed to explode when we see those forecast 70-degree temperatures. The slope south of the house is greening up even in the cold weather so when it warms up, it won’t take long with the rain we have until mowing becomes a reality. Of course that part of the lawn always dries up first when the rain stops so it all evens out.
See you next week…real good then.
As the scurs anticipated, April showers appeared. Warmth however did not. Will we see any improvement or will we be stuck in the fridge another week? Starting Wednesday, cloudy with a good chance of a rain. Highs in the lower 40’s and lows in the low 30’s. For Thursday mostly cloudy with a good chance of rain changing to a rain/snow mix. Highs near 40 and lows in the upper 20’s. Cloudy in the morning on Friday with a chance of snow. Highs in the upper 30’s and lows in the mid-20’s. Saturday could be the best day in the forecast. Mostly sunny with highs in the mid 40’s and lows in the mid 30’s. Becoming cloudy by evening however with a modest chance of rain. On Sunday, mostly cloudy with a good chance of rain. Highs in the upper 40’s to low 50’s with lows in the upper 20’s. Partly cloudy on Monday with a continued chance for rain. Highs in the upper 40’s and lows in the upper 30’s. Mostly cloudy on Tuesday with a chance of flurries. Highs in the mid 40’s and lows in the upper 20’s. The normal high for Earth Day, April 22nd is 60 and the normal low is 38. On the 18th, the sun will set after 8 p.m. The scurs are thinking last week’s snowmen will be knee high by the 4th of July.
What a crummy week of weather last week was. Starting with April 6th, measureable precipitation was recorded for 10 straight days at the ranch, totaling 3.31”. This included the moisture from 4.4” of snow. This has not happened since we began recording precipitation at the ranch back in 2008. The ground was frozen several mornings this week, and there was enough ice so one had to be careful walking while doing chores. We were fortunate, however, to be spared from the ice that toppled radio towers and downed power lines in the Worthington and Avoca areas. Some of the images evoked memories of the Halloween blizzard. Never seeing another storm like that one would be too soon.
While the weather has brought any notion of fieldwork to a halt, it has brought some precious moisture. Luckily most of it has fallen in measured amounts so the vast majority of it has soaked in. As of this writing there has been no official measurement at the SROC but we should be inching closer to the average amount of soil moisture available in the top 5’ of soil for April 15th. That amount is close to 10” for the 1977 – 2011 average. We are certainly in better shape than we were last fall at freeze up. We’ve also eclipsed the average precip amount for April at the SROC which is 3.21” making the 3rd month in a row that has happened. It doesn’t signal the drought is over, although it certainly isn’t getting worse at this point.
Changes in the landscape this spring have been subtle at best. The south facing slope in the pasture is greening up, as are road ditches with the same exposure. Robins and grackle frequent those areas in search of earthworms. When it’s warm enough, they appear to be finding some. On the days when the ground has been frozen or it’s just plain too cold, the robins have been relying on the crabapple tree for sustenance. There is still a confusing mixture of birds at the ranch. There are still large numbers of juncos among the grackles and robins.
Redpoll numbers aren’t what they were a month ago but there are still a handful hanging around the feeders yet. A few goldfinches are returning as are their yellow colors, giving us hope that spring may eventually show its face. Around the area, small puddles and ponds have seen abundant migrating waterfowl including mallards, bluebills and northern shovelers.
Ice was still covering about 80% of St. Olaf Lake yet Tuesday morning and had melted since the prior evening. On the pond at the ranch, waterfowl has been scattered. One lone western chorus frog was heard faintly croaking Friday night as I made some repairs to the fence. Because of the cold temperatures, the sound was as if someone was running their finger over the teeth on a comb very slowly, one tooth at a time. Searching through the grass revealed the small frog, attired in a tiny scarf and mittens.
The last lambs were born on the 11th. It was a bittersweet ending to a promising lambing season. Two ewes lambed and we wound up with only one lamb between them. That’s the way it goes sometimes. If it was always easy, everybody would be doing it. At least the health of the lamb crop in general has been good. It takes a lot of bedding, though, when it's been as wet and cold as it's been. With the slow growth of the pasture, it’s difficult to operate as we’d like without burning up more of the expensive hay that’s in short supply.
Ruby and Fudgie went in for their annual immunization and heartworm check last Saturday on the outskirts of Little Jerusalem. This was our first trip to a vet with Fudgie. Since she’s an older dog with a propensity to be temperamental, we were a tad apprehensive. It’s always comforting that the folks in charge are totally professional and prepared for anything. Somehow having Ruby along seemed to serve as a buffer. She’s a people person, er, dog and thinks everyone likes her or should if they don’t. Both dogs’ inner Border Collie was on alert, taking note of anything that moved as we waited our turn.
What took us totally by surprise when it came time for the exam was Fudgie immediately singling Dr. Tom out and jumping up on him, not once but twice, her tail wagging playfully. Normally I’d firmly reprimand the dog, but in this case we took full advantage of her suddenly being smitten, the exam and immunizations being accomplished with minimal effort. Both dogs were well behaved and received lots of praise following their procedures as well as treats upon arriving home. As the saying goes, home is where the dog is.
See you next week…real good then.
Another week of slow progress toward spring. At least it was largely dry. Will April showers dampen our spirits? Starting Wednesday, cloudy with a good chance of sleet turning into accumulating snow. Highs 35 - 40 and lows near 25. Mostly cloudy becoming partly cloudy on Thursday with a chance of light snow. Highs in the mid-30s and lows of 20 – 25. Partly cloudy on Friday and slightly warmer with highs around 40 and lows of 25 – 30. Partly cloudy for Saturday becoming mostly cloudy with a chance of a rain/snow mix. Highs 45 – 50 and lows near 35. Cloudy on Sunday with a good chance of rain. Highs 45 – 50 and lows dropping to the upper 30s. Continued cloudy for Monday with a moderate chance of rain. Highs of 45 - 50 and lows in the mid-20s. Little chance for sunshine on Tuesday along with another chance of light rain. Highs near 45 and lows around 35. The normal high for April 15th is 57 and the normal low is 35. Some are wondering how the government might tax the cold April weather. The scurs have faith in their creativity and know they’ll figure it out.
Spring is still dragging its feet. Nothing to get alarmed about as once the weather breaks it shouldn’t take long given the present dry subsoils for fieldwork to commence. There’s the issue of frost of course although there are places the frost appears to be out. Where it is measured at the SROC, the frost was officially out on April 8th. There are places where it is definitely not and the ice is still not off area lakes as of this writing. St. Olaf Lake had a ring of water around it about 15’ – 20’ wide as one looked from the road on the west. There are also some remaining snow banks in the fencelines, around groves and in particular on the north sides of building sites. It is obvious in some of those areas the frost is not out yet either as one can attempt to walk in the field there and sink to your ankles on the first step. A warm rain would help take the remaining frost out although there are few indications a warm rain will happen anytime soon.
It isn’t late yet and while some are getting antsy, the calendar says it’s still early April. Some are also getting nervous about rainfall amounts. While some rain would be nice, it is not necessary to have a full profile going into spring to produce a decent crop. We received about .54” from Friday through Tuesday a.m. at the ranch. Since it stays cloudy much of the time and doesn’t warm up, one has to believe we are making some progress on restoring soil moisture. And, we need to be careful what we wish for. The weather can turn on a dime as we’ve seen in the past, turning what appeared to be a dry spring into muddy mess. I can guarantee that if I decide to plant potatoes in a dry area that has a tendency to be wet it will soon return to its former condition, thwarting my attempt to outguess the weather.
Spring continues to arrive in the form of new birds and activity around the ranch. The rooster pheasant has set up shop less than 100’ from the house and he crows every morning starting before sunrise. On Sunday before the Lion’s Club pancake feed, a pair of wood ducks was scoping out the soft maple trees in search of cavities for a nest. There were none however and it made me wonder if the two houses by the pond were occupied already. The water level in the pond is high enough so water is running into the overflow intake and one of the houses is in the water, requiring waders to inspect it. It is tempting to install another wood duck house in the yard just to see if they’d use it. My guess is the answer would be yes.
Fortunately for the ground nesting birds, the “SkunkWar” at the ranch has reached a cease fire by both sides. The out-of-code pickled herring in the live trap worked to perfection and there were fewer skunks as of Tuesday last. The Norwegians and Swedes were catch and release. It’s much more relaxing to go outside at 10 p.m., not worrying about running across a black and white member of the weasel family with a built-in cache of chemical weapons. It’s even better not to have a dog being sprayed and dealing with the aftermath from that. Mr. Cheviot 3, Skunks 0.
Speaking of going outside after dark, Vista’s noted Swedish astronomer paid a visit last week and requested that I not use his name in my column. I would never dream of doing such a thing! There are several features to make note of in the evening sky in April. The most prominent is Jupiter, about halfway up in the western sky presently. Look for it to be to the right of the crescent moon on the 14th. Saturn will begin rising in the east about a half hour before sunset. It won’t be as bright and is more yellow than Jupiter. Saturn should be to the left of the Full Moon on the 25th and to the right of the still nearly Full Moon on the 26th. As we approach the end of the month Venus also reappears low in the western sky. Maybe by that time the ripped up road through Vista will once again be paved with gold.
It’s official: The gawker slowdown has officially started at the ranch. The snow and ice finally released their icy grip on the fence, allowing me to charge it. The lambs wasted no time in discovering their newly found track and were off to the races the first night. This caused passersby to tap their brakes as they slowed down to watch the young ovines do their little stiff legged hop. Along about 7:45 the ewes put a stop to their fun and games. Plus they’re about tuckered out. Makes me tired just watching them.
See you next week…real good then.
The scurs were banking on Monday and Tuesday being April, not February. They should know better in Minnesota. Which month do we want to emulate this week, boys and girls? Starting Wednesday, mostly clear with highs near 50 and lows in the lower 30s. Partly cloudy on Thursday with a slight chance of a morning shower. Highs again near 50 and lows around 30. Partly cloudy becoming mostly cloudy on Friday with slight chance of an afternoon shower and a good chance of an evening shower or thunderstorm. Highs near 50 and lows around 35. Mostly cloudy with a good chance of showers. Highs in the mid to upper 40s and lows around 35. Partly cloudy on Sunday becoming mostly cloudy with a slight chance of a shower. Highs around 45 and lows near 35. Cloudy on Monday with a moderate chance of a rain and/or snow shower. Highs again near 50 and lows in the lower 40s. Mostly cloudy on Tuesday with a good chance of showers. Highs in the mid 40’s and lows around 30. The normal high for April 6th is 52 and the normal low is 31. We will see just over 13 hours of daylight on the 6th, roughly the same as we experience on September 2nd. The scurs are going out on a limb here and predicting Norwood Teague should track down a C-squad basketball coach to replace Tubby Smith by then.
After coming in like a roaring lion, March has gone out with more of a whimper. We managed to tally 18.8” of snow, which compared to the SROC’s 18.9”. The March average at the SROC is 10.2”. As far as total precip, when snow melt is factored in, we received 3.41” at the ranch and 3.55” at the SROC compared to 2.49” average there. It doesn’t mean the drought is over, but it is the second month in a row with above-normal precipitation and we remain above average since January 1. It should be very interesting to see what their available soil moisture in the top 5’ of soil reading says for early April.
While some still exists in patches, much of our snow left last week and few were sorry to see it go. Finally one really has to work at it to slip and fall on the ice. The remnants of all the grit spread to prevent falls serve as a reminder where those slick patches were on the trail to the barn. Even the mud has subsided to some extent, meaning the frost is either out or down far enough to allow the water to soak in. Poking around the yard with the frost divining rod (electric fencepost) one can find spots where the frost is probably nonexistent. Other places, such as those where the snow just left, it’s still frozen right at the surface. At the SROC, where they actually have real tools with which to measure such things, the frost read 0 – 4” and 11 – 19”, apparently due to the thawing from this past week. Ice is still very much a factor on area lakes although shallow wetlands such as the one at the ranch have completely thawed. The .21” of rainfall from Saturday probably helped.
Most of the lambs are now on the ground save for those from a couple of straggler ewes. We religiously check to see if they’ve arrived yet, to no avail. They’ll get here eventually although sooner would be preferable to later. Some of the first lambs could be weaned already in about a week. At 35 lbs., lord knows they’re big enough. It would just be nice if the snow would melt off the fence enough so we could get the wires back up and charge it. That would allow us to let all the ewes with lambs run outside so they could get more fresh air. Having to keep them cooped up inside really burns through the bedding and makes it tough for the lambs to cut loose as they love to do. Many people have asked if they’re out running yet at dusk so they can drive by to watch. Even one of Al Batt’s famed Bruces inquired about them the other day. Expect traffic delays soon.
The birds always serve as a good barometer for what the seasons are doing. The red-winged blackbirds are usually the first to arrive and they did so on March 28th. Soon after a couple of meadowlarks were spotted west of the former pygmy goat farmer’s place. A couple rooster pheasants were also observed that same day sparring out behind the barn. There have even been some hens appearing since then heading for the thicket where Little Jerry’s descendant holds court. Last year at this time the robins had been back for several weeks already. The ground was thawed so they were able to get at their favorite food, the earthworms. This year when they arrived at the ranch, it was the 29th and the ground was essentially still frozen. They had little choice but to attack the Indian Magic crabapple tree, which they did almost immediately. Fortunately it was loaded last year fall and it retains its fruit through spring. Something that has been rather unique this season has been the large numbers of juncos in the yard at the same time as large groups of robins. There are still some redpolls here too as of April 2nd so one has to wonder if Old Man Winter might still have one more trick up his sleeve.
Another skunk has graced our farmyard once again. Holed up in the granary, same as last time, only this one has been evading my trapping efforts. I thought perhaps I’d found a secret weapon by baiting with the eggs previously. This one figured out when the eggs aren’t frozen, digging under the trap satisfies its needs. Rummaging through the refrigerator I spied a container of pickled herring that had been pushed to the back and hidden behind other items. It was funny colored and had a little mold on it. Perfect! I baited the trap with it in anticipation that my skunk woes would soon be over. Haven’t caught any skunks yet, but sure have had one hell of a time with the Swedes and Norwegians.
See you next week…real good then.
After a week where the scurs were starting to wonder if it was ever going to be spring, we were treated to some above freezing temps for a change. Will we continue our upward spiral? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy with highs near 35 and lows around 20. Partly cloudy for Thursday and slightly warmer. Highs of 40 and lows of 20-25. Partly cloudy on Friday and warmer with a slight chance of a rain/snow mix. Highs in the mid 40s and lows around 30. Saturday, mostly cloudy with a good chance of rain. Highs near 45 and lows around 30. Partly cloudy for Easter Sunday with highs close to 40 and lows around 25. Partly cloudy for Monday and Tuesday. Highs near 40 and lows around 25. The normal high for March 31st is 48 and the normal low is 29. The scurs will be using a pick axe to plant their potatoes on Good Friday, then color their Easter eggs Saturday night. No foolin’.
The Full Moon for March falls on the 27th and is commonly known as the Full Worm Moon as the ground thaws allowing these invertebrates to leave their castings above ground, making yards rough for lawnmowers. There are other names as well, including the Full Crow Moon, the Full Sap Moon and the Lenten Moon, marking the last Full Moon of winter. The Ojibwe called this the Full Crust Moon as the snow begins to crust over with the freezing and thawing taking place. The Sioux knew this as the Moon When Buffalo Drop Their Calves. At the ranch we know it as the Moon When Gravel Appears under the Snow Piles. Didn’t realize there was still that much left on the driveway.
It seems like spring is coming slow and relative to what we’ve become used to in the past decade or so, it is. However, for those young whippersnappers who didn’t grow up in the ‘60s and ‘70s, this spring has been more typical of what we experienced during those years. Did I mention I also walked uphill in chest-deep snow both ways to school? When the first day of spring came, it usually was just a date on the calendar as the ground was snow covered and it was still cold. When it was nice on that date, one could almost count on a blizzard sometime after that to remove any doubt that spring really didn’t start until April. Even that wasn’t a given. I remember sliding down the hill in our pasture on April 29th and being disappointed when the snow melted so I couldn’t do it one more day.
The slow speed at which this spring is moving is not the worst thing in the world. The snow is leaving very gradually, which should allow more of it to remain on the landscape. Frost measured at the SROC in Waseca still showed 23” of frost in the ground as of the 25th. Slow thawing during the day allows some of the water to from the snow melt to soak in, particularly on fields where primary tillage has been performed. Freezing up overnight helps slow the potential for flooding, especially in areas to the north where a larger snow pack is in place. The sun has amazing power and it quickly burns holes in the snow-covered fields, then enlarges the areas of exposed soil daily. The fly in the ointment may be the snow pack to the north if we see another blocking high parked in Northern Canada. Without some southerly wind flow to warm us up, winds blowing from the north across that snow pack will make the odds of a quick warmup anytime soon lower.
There are some signs that spring is coming around the ranch in the bird department. There was a grackle in the crabapple tree on Palm Sunday and there were killdeers heard in the field during the latter part of the week. Chickadees continue their spring song as do the cardinals. The cardinals are almost always feeding under the trees after sunset, perhaps in order to avoid drawing attention from a hawk to the bright red males. And there has been a Cooper’s hawk visiting the yard lately so they are wise to avoid him. The redpolls seem to be taking the hint too that it might be time to start making their way back north. Their numbers are starting to decline at the feeders. There were a few goldfinches starting to in appear in their stead after having going most of the winter without seeing any.
Pruning the apple trees was accomplished on Saturday while the snow banks were still solid enough to allow good footing while reaching into the trees with the loppers. Some of the trees were in desperate need of a haircut as the amount of sapwood and suckers just since last year was atrocious. Some might think with the drought we had pruning the trees would be a bad thing. To the contrary, getting rid of some of the extracurricular growth becomes even more important if one wants apples and not just leaves. Besides, the apple trees were watered very well before freeze up last fall. Even some of the small crabapples were shaped up as it’s less time consuming to establish their shape now as opposed to waiting until they’re 20’ tall. Something that was also apparent was the time spent last October putting tree wrap around any small trees should pay big dividends. The cottontail population has continued to be a nuisance as evidenced by the chewed up wild plum and sumac on the edge of the yard. If I ever obtain my burning permit from the People’s Republic of Steele County, it’ll put a quick end to their fun and games.
It’s a mess after the fruit trees are pruned, of course, but some of the branches are cut up and used for grilling purposes. About time too because the first lamb burgers of the season came off the Weber grill just the other night. There was a little apple wood left in it from before and the smoky flavor came through. Of course those first burgers of spring are always the tastiest although one has to keep checking periodically over the course of the season just to be certain.
See you next week…real good then.
After this past week’s cool conditions, the scurs are wondering if Mother Nature’s thermostat is broken. Will the repairman arrive to repair it anytime soon? Starting with Wednesday, mostly sunny with highs in the upper teens and lows around 5. Mostly sunny for Thursday and slightly warmer. Highs in the low to mid-20s and lows around 10 above. Partly cloudy and warmer for Friday with highs in the mid to upper 20’s and lows of 15 – 20. Saturday, mostly cloudy with a slight chance of snow. Highs around 35 and lows near 20. Cloudy Sunday with another slight chance of snow. Highs again in the mid-30s and lows of 25 – 30. Mostly cloudy Monday with a chance of snow. Highs inching close to 40 and lows around 30. Partly sunny on Tuesday with highs in the low to mid-40’s and lows near freezing. The normal high for March 20th, the first day of spring is 42 and the normal low is 24. The scurs are predicting with the vernal equinox upon us once more hens will be crabby while setting on all those eggs standing on end.
Yes, the first day of spring is happening and that’s going to be about it. Looking longingly at last year, many are of the opinion that this could be a late spring. Well, at any rate it’ll be later than last year. As we’ve mentioned before, radishes were planted on St. Patty’s Day and I can recall grilling lamb chops on the grill in my T-shirt. The relatively minor amount of small grain was going in the ground as it should’ve been. Some corn was put in the ground in late March, although reports were mixed on its performance. Corn planted the first week in April seemed a much safer bet! Last week’s snowfall was indeed a wet one with another .95” of water melted out of it. Much of that still remains on the frozen soil surface, so while it benefits streams and wetlands, it does little to recharge soil moisture for crops. You can bet it will still make for some messy road conditions though.
I should’ve guessed on the morning of the 11th that spring was a ways off yet when walking across the yard to the barn. A relatively large group of snow and blue geese was overhead, winging their way south! Their higher pitched call made their identification easy and the intermixing of older blues (dark bodies, white heads and necks) had me recalling my early post-college days living in the flyway in North Dakota. Always a sight to see the hundreds of thousands making their way south. But wait! That used to be in October and November!
Around the yard, rooster pheasants continue to make their presence known in the plum and sumac thicket, probably great grandsons of Little Jerry by now. One rooster was in the ash tree outside the sliding glass window so after grabbing the camera he naturally high tailed it out of there so no photos. There are at least two pair of cardinals visiting under the feeders during the day and they’re often there until after the sun sets. The redpoll numbers appear to be starting to tail off somewhat. I hope so. Spring needs to spring and they’ve eaten a lot of thistle seed. Kestrels were spotted in the area so I need to get to the wetland area yet to get some spring housecleaning done in the wood duck house they’ve staked a claim to the past several seasons.
The skunk finally met its maker on Saturday. After Fudgie had a close call with our uninvited stinky guest in the barn as I was feeding lambs, it strengthened my resolve to do away with the pest. I secured the area, making sure the skunk was no longer in the barn, then I cracked some eggs into the live trap upon the advice of my trapping consultant. Sure enough, a few mornings later, there was skunk odor emanating from the granary. Peeking around the sliding door, it was obvious to me the trap had been sprung. Chores were done first and then I morphed into commando mode.
I grabbed my trusty blunderbuss, chambered three shells, then quickly slid the granary door open. Yep, it was the skunk all right and a big one at that. I had beforehand attached about 30 yards of bale twine to the trap so I could pull it out in the open and get a good shot at it. I’d heard if you put a cover over the skunk so they can’t see you they won’t spray. However, I wasn’t taking any chances on getting that close. As I pulled the trap out of the granary the critter became agitated, letting loose an enormous cloud of spray. The stench was putrid, almost nauseating, even though I was well upwind. When the trapped skunk was where I wanted it I pumped a #4 20-gauge shell into the enemy, dropping it like a sack of dirt. I muttered a few invectives in the direction of the conquered and went inside to let the air clear before disposing of it. As I told one of my little fat buddies earlier in the week, I’ve never felt bad about shooting a skunk. Still don’t.
Lambing thundered along last week to the point where we only have about four ewes left to lamb. There was even a set of triplet ewe lambs born but what to name them? They’re a novelty and fortunately the ewe is raising all of them. Thus far they haven’t needed any help from a bottle. The barns have been getting full and the weather needs to break one of these days so we can let all of the ewes with new lambs outside.
Congratulations to the NRHEG basketball girls on winning the Class AA championship! While we were unable to attend the tournament games, we faithfully listened on the radio or watched them on TV. After all, our neighbor girls were playing and leading the team to victory. Probably the most impressive thing about their big win came on Sunday morning; they were all in church at 9 a.m. As Mrs. Cheviot said, I think we found names for the set of triplet ewe lambs, namely Carlie, Maddie and Marnie. Way to go girls! Kudos on your tremendous accomplishment! We don’t name sheep after just anyone.
See you next week…real good then.
We got more of the precip out of the way on Saturday than the scurs might’ve guessed, but at least March has been living up to its reputation for sloppy, wet conditions. Will we get more of the same? Starting with Wednesday, partly cloudy with a chance of flurries. Highs in the mid 20’s and lows around 15. Partly cloudy on Thursday with highs of 35 and lows of 25. Mostly cloudy for Friday through Sunday with a chance of rain changing over to snow. Highs near 35 and lows of 25 – 30. Partly sunny on Monday with highs of 25 – 30 and lows around 25. Partly sunny for Tuesday and warmer with highs of 30 – 35 and lows near 25. Sunday marks St. Patrick’s Day already and it is significant as we see more than 12 hours of daylight for the first time since September 24th. Through the wonders of our federal government nanny, the sun will magically set at 7:23 although you can get up and stumble around in the dark again since the sun rises at 7:22 a.m. The normal high for St. Patty’s is 40 and the normal low is 23. The scurs will hoist a green Kool Aid to celebrate.
The rainfall over the past weekend was surprisingly abundant with 1.09” being tallied at the ranch gauge. It definitely was as advertised, making area door yards sloppy messes along with exposing ice in places, again. However, heavy, wet snowfall Sunday night covered a lot of the ice so traction could be afforded once again without nearly the danger of slipping and falling. Unfortunately with the ground still frozen, much of what has fallen will likely run off or collect in area wetlands. That’s OK though. I can see the wetland from the bedroom window is once again full, something that hasn’t been the case since back in June.
Most tried and true weather observers are telling us we should be thankful that it is showing us that it can indeed still rain on a widespread basis. Something that always makes me smile are the gloom and doomers telling people things like it will take years for us to recover from last summer’s moisture deficit. In 1964 we experienced a drought here in southern MN. In the spring of 1965, we experienced record precip and flooding. It rained on Easter Sunday and as legend would have it, for 7 straight Sundays. In 1988, we came off what was for many the most devastating drought they had ever experienced. By 1991, we embarked on what was to become known as the wettest decade of the 1900’s. Even last spring, conditions were equally as dry as they are this spring yet somehow we pulled off some pretty tremendous yields all things considered. Why? It rained over 6” in both May and June at the ranch. Look, the weather is going to do what it’s going to do and with enough people predicting different outcomes, someone is bound to be right. The trouble is their consistency isn’t very good.
Redpolls remain a major bird species at our bird feeders. Near as I can estimate there are somewhere between 60 and 80 in the bunch. They don’t all fit on the feeders so those that don’t cover the ground underneath. One of these days however they will head back to the north and am somewhat surprised they haven’t already. Cardinals have started their spring song in town although I have yet to hear it at the ranch. Not to worry as it seems things always move a little slower out here in the country.
The recent warmer temperatures have awakened several of my least favorite animals, namely skunks and raccoons. Mrs. Cheviot had a close call with one of the local Pepé Le Pews as she rounded the corner of the granary towards the lambing barn. Mr. Cheviot did his duty to head back to the house to retrieve a weapon of mass destruction, but by the time he did of course the skunk had slithered off to parts unknown. The worst part of it is he’s apparently camping under the granary as several times the odor has been downright intense in the barnyard. The live trap hasn’t yielded any results yet either, so it’s becoming tempting to resort to desperate measures. It’s become standard operating procedure to secure the area before letting the dogs outside too. Cleaning them up after a skunk encounter is never much fun. In the meantime, I’m watching Caddyshack again to get some pointers on vermin control.
The dogs had plenty of mud to deal with the way it was over the weekend with the promise of more to come. Anyone who has ever had a dog on the farm during the spring knows exactly what I’m talking about. They are impossible to keep clean, especially active dogs like Border Collies or especially Labs, who thrive on mud and water regardless of its temperature. Eventually the ground will thaw, it’ll dry out and it’s no big deal. Having a garden hose with warm water at the ready seems to be our best bet with Ruby and Fudgie.
The ewes finally kicked it into gear again so we managed to get over half-done with the lambing project. Of special note were the black twins born Thursday, a buck and a ewe. There’s something about these little oddballs, the black sheep. The lambs seem a little cuter than usual and are always the first ones to be picked up and played with. In the pasture they are a novelty as well, with many driving by commenting about the black sheep mixed in with a large group of white ewes. In this case the lambs were also bellwethers of good things to come after we’d been through a rough stretch with some full term lambs being stillborn. Shortly after they hit the ground, we had some of the nicest ewe lambs born to date, including one that had been chilled, warmed up in the house and still claimed by the mother upon her return to the lambing pen. That doesn’t always happen and usually results in a bottle feeding situation. Wonderful if you have kids to feed them, not so wonderful if you’re the poor schmuck who still hasn’t convinced himself that it’s a losing proposition. There’s always a black sheep in the family.
See you next week…real good then.
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Well so much for the scurs’ prediction of a slight chance of snow on Monday. Can you imagine what might’ve happened if it had been a good chance? Starting Wednesday, mostly clear. Highs near 25 and lows around 10. Partly cloudy for Thursday and Friday with highs in the lower 30’s and highs in the mid-20’s. Mostly cloudy for Saturday with highs near 30 and lows in the lower 20’s. Mostly cloudy for Sunday with a modest chance of rain and/or snow in the morning and a modest chance of rain in the afternoon. Highs in the upper 30’s with lows around 30. Mostly cloudy for Monday and Tuesday with a chance of an occasional rain/snow mix both days. Highs of 35 – 40 and lows of 15 – 20. The normal high for March 9th is 36 and the normal low is 20. The scurs will be waiting for the glacier to recede so they can find their step ladder to set their clocks ahead an hour at precisely 2 a.m. on Sunday morning.
Ah yes, it’s time to face the dreaded time change once again. The proponents will trot out Ben Franklin as the Father of Daylight Saving Time and severely chastise anyone who dares call it Daylight Savings Time. I have several other names for it but that’s beside the point. You wouldn’t dare question the authority and brain trust of our almighty federal government in this day and age, now would you? This silly law has been in effect for most of my life, dating back to the days when seeing Studebakers, hearing sonic booms and eating at the Taystee Freeze were common. Somehow I think even Ben Franklin after seeing how much lost work time has resulted, how many accidents have been caused by falls while resetting clocks and how many heart attacks have been linked to this law would have to profoundly say “This is really stupid.” Hard to believe the human race actually survived just fine without it for thousands of years.
Early week snowfall suddenly has increased the amount of water on the landscape. Measuring snowfall is not an exact science especially when it’s driven by the wind and blows much of it off the snow measuring board. Sometimes one has to improvise as was the case Monday morning. Turns out some of the hay bunks and tubs make handy collecting devices and can give one a relative idea of the approximate snowfall measurement. With most of the snow in drifts of varying depths that’s about the best one can do. Tuesday morning was a different story as the snow fell without the wind making it easy to cut a biscuit. We tallied about 3.6” of snow on Monday and 4.5” on Tuesday. Both snowfall events contained a lot of moisture as opposed to the last snow in February. That snow was about .07” of liquid equivalent per inch. The last two snowfalls were more dense, containing closer to .1” per inch on average. Moving it with the tractor was about like moving frozen cottage cheese. Yes, it’s all about food.
I am an extremely privileged man to be considered worthy of a phone call from Edna when the weather becomes potentially inclement. I have her on caller ID on the cell phone so it’s with a smile when I answer those calls concerning what the weather is going to do. After all, any one of us would hate to have her fall on the ice. I hate falling on the ice myself!
Speaking of that, the hockey rink and bobsled run that have comprised our yard much of the winter since January sometime have begun to subside. Oh sure there are still some spots where it’s possible to go down if you’re not careful but at least it’s not as treacherous as it was. Hopefully with the longer days any ice forming as a result of this latest snow will be short lived. It doesn’t look like we’ll be planting garden on St. Patrick’s Day or mowing lawn by the end of the month like last year however. It’s unlikely as well to be harvesting rhubarb on April 7th with the soils still frozen down 25” at the SROC in Waseca.
Lambing season has been on hold as apparently the ewes and rams must’ve been on strike last September. The heat during the first part of that month appears to have been the culprit as warm temperatures can cause rams to lose their virility. Some of the ewes seem to wait until cooler weather to cycle as well. With their cycles occurring on average about every 16 days, it doesn’t take much to throw a monkey wrench into lambing progress down the road about 5 months later. Oh well, they’ll get here when they get here. At least those born almost a month ago are already huge. Someday when the snow leaves, they can go outside to play in the sunshine so the kids on Bus Driver Pam’s bus can see them.
Birds continue to be numerous at the feeders. Cardinals appear as regulars now, something unheard of since we moved in here some 28 years ago. Heard the chickadees doing their spring fee-bee call this past week at the ranch after hearing it the week prior in Bugtussle. Can’t fool a chickadee; they know it’ll be spring someday. The rooster pheasants have been making themselves known nearby with lots of crowing in the morning from various points on the landscape. And to the south about a mile some large black objects were on the move across the fields. Wild turkeys out enjoying a morning stroll in the sun while picking up some of the plentiful corn left behind from last fall. Should be some nice fat toms out there for hunters looking for a nice turkey dinner.
See you next week…real good then.
The scurs were in their glory this past week and wouldn’t you know, school was even closed on Friday! Will we see more of the same or do we get a pass this week? Starting Wednesday, mostly cloudy with a slight chance of snow. Highs of 30 – 35 and lows of 20 – 25. Partly cloudy for Thursday through Saturday with highs of 25 – 30 and lows of 10 – 15. Partly cloudy on Sunday with highs of 25 - 30 and lows around 15. Mostly cloudy Monday with a slight chance of snow. Highs of 30 and lows near 20. Tuesday, partly cloudy with highs around 30 and lows falling to about 15 above. On February 27th the sun will set at 6 p.m. As of March 1st we have gained about 2 hours and 19 minutes of daylight since the winter solstice. The normal high for March 1st is 33 and the normal low is 16. The scurs have their sights set on getting one last slide down the hill before putting the toboggan away for the season.
Yes, tobogganing was again possible after the last storm dumped about 7” of snow at the ranch. The snow was surprisingly dry for a late February storm however, so melted down it contained the equivalent of only .5” of liquid precipitation. We’re in a little different position than we were a year ago at this time as there was little frost in the ground. Last year we received a generous helping of rain on February 29th, much of which went into the ground. Last check at the SROC they’re still looking at 25” of frozen soil, so this last snow likely won’t benefit crops much. It will however be beneficial for some of the wetlands that have been begging for moisture since last July. It would be wonderful to actually be able to hunt some waterfowl this fall again for a change. Sunday’s hoar frost brought us a reminder of how beautiful the landscape can be when the trees and fences are frost covered. It didn’t take long for Jack Frost’s handiwork to be erased by the sun and warmer temperatures.
Like many others in the neighborhood, this snowfall meant the first time our entire yard needed a major cleaning out. Oh sure, there have been some nuisance drifts that showed up here and there. Those were easily managed by a few passes with the small skid loader. Beats shoveling and it was relatively quick. This time was a different story and the tractor was nearly helpless on the ice without putting the chains on so back to the shed I went after almost getting stuck. There is no clean way to put a rusty set of chains on a tractor unless you want to wear a disposable Tyvek suit I suppose. It had been a while since I put them on so it took some head scratching to remember what was right side out or vice-versa. Eventually they were on correctly and I made short work of the snow. Regardless, same thing, different year and moving snow is still for the birds.
Speaking of the birds, there were some subtle changes at the ranch and surrounds this past week. Mourning doves are back under the feeders again. While they do stay around especially in town or more sheltered locales, this marks the first we’ve seen of them since late last fall. Also along the roadways, after seeing many snow buntings the brutally cold week before, many of you have probably noticed the numerous small flocks of brown birds that get up and fly off as you drive by. What I’ve been seeing are primarily horned larks. They are ground nesting birds and can begin nesting as early as February. Might be a little tough to incubate eggs as long as their nesting grounds remain snow covered. The redpolls continue to amaze and amuse. When the feeders are refilled or topped off, they totally encase the mesh thistle seed feeders. Some have also become rather used to my presence when filling the feeders. It doesn’t take them long to figure out that seeing me means breakfast and lunch are served.
We got some lambs moved from the lambing barn on Sunday down to their loafing area in the main barn. After church we docked tails, gave shots and put in ear tags so we’ll know who is who. The creep feeder was set up as well so we can get the lambs on solid feed as quickly as possible. The sooner ewes and lambs are weaned the more the chores become consolidated. Nothing slows things down like lots of small pens of animals to deal with. The lambs have generally been doing very well. They are all very active and those we moved really enjoyed their newfound space to run and frolic in the fresh bedding. There are always a few one keeps an eye on when you hear a cough though. That’s just part of trying to provide good animal husbandry. Sure, we keep antibiotics on hand just in case but a little extra bedding goes a long way towards keeping them dry and helping to prevent pneumonia.
Oh yes, the Border Collies got to help move the ewes and lambs. Fudgie was allowed to participate and even though she’d never moved sheep per se, she was generally where she should’ve been. Along with Ruby she provided a perimeter that the ewes weren’t supposed to violate. Last week’s snow also provided some better footing for all parties concerned, sticking the ice surface so we remained upright for the duration. The dogs didn’t waste any time playing in the snow after we were finished either. The rooster tails of snow behind them reminded me of the snowmobilers who were busy wearing out the fresh coating of white stuff. One major difference: there is no running out of gas with these two dogs.
See you next week…real good then.
The scurs had more on their minds than measuring snow this past week and luckily there wasn’t much to measure. Will our fortunes be changing anytime soon? Starting Wednesday, mostly sunny with highs near 15 and lows around 10. Thursday, cloudy with snow likely. Highs of 20 and lows of 15. Cloudy again but warmer for Friday with a good chance of snow in the daylight hours. Highs of 25 and lows near 10. Mostly cloudy for Saturday with a slight chance of snow. Highs of 20 – 25 and lows close to 5. Cloudy Sunday and slightly warmer with an increasing chance of snow. Highs of 25 – 30 and lows of 5 – 10. Monday, cloudy with a good chance once again for snow. Highs of 30 - 35 and lows around 20. Cloudy for Tuesday with a chance of snow and ice mix. Highs of 30 and lows of 25. The normal high for February 22nd is 30 and the normal low is 12. On the 24th, the sun will rise at 7 a.m. and on the 25th, we’ll see 11 hours of daylight for the first time since mid-October. The scurs cannot tell a lie: they are glad the days are getting longer so they can resume lounging by a non-frozen ceement pond.
February 25th marks the arrival of the Full Moon for the month. It is traditionally known as the Full Snow Moon as snowfall during this lunar period was typically the highest for the tribes in the Northeastern U.S. It was also known as the Full Hunger Moon as the deep snow tended to hamper hunting activity. Closer to home the Ojibwe knew this as the Sucker Moon as the suckers would be running in the clear cold streams. On the prairies the Sioux called it the Raccoon Moon as warmer temperatures would awaken the raccoons as they would begin to forage for food. At the ranch, we call this the Barn is Too Small Moon or We Need Fewer Sheep Moon due to the large number of lambs hitting the ground.
We continue to see some colder weather well into February and the way things are going, perhaps a more typical March. Doesn’t this mean snow? Not necessarily. If the pattern of the last decade or so holds, we are more likely to see precipitation fall in the form of rain. This may be a good thing as long as the soils are thawed because it definitely will hold a lot of it. How much will it hold? We have probably built our stored soil moisture since last measurement by 1” – 2” in the top 18” due to snow melting and rains in small amount that did not run off, particularly on fields where primary tillage was performed last fall. The precip tends to collect in the valleys of the ridges and stay there. Since we were looking at 4” – 5” last fall and probably have 6” – 7” now, we can probably hold in the neighborhood of 5” – 6”. Some of the rain that fell back on the 11th however was enough to run off in places as the ground was frozen. The January excavation in our wetland has some water in it now. Hopefully spring rains will refill to capacity once again.
It is still a winter wonderland at the ranch and as such the birds are still flocking to the feeders daily. The cardinals continue to stay faithful and make me hope to hear the males singing come spring. Few bird songs are more beautiful to the ear. By the dozens, redpolls are continuing to descend on the feeders each morning about chore time, greeting us before sunrise. The chickadees scold although I have yet to hear their fee-bee spring call. In the fields surrounding us the flocks of snow buntings this past week have been enormous. It’s the most I can recall seeing since our days as kids listening intently to the turquoise AM kitchen radio for KFIL to announce that Spring Valley schools were closed for the day. That’s a long time ago folks.
Last weekend was shearing weekend and as is frequently the case, we had people come and watch as my friend and neighbor made short work of shearing the flock. It’s tough to shear very fast at our establishment as it really was never designed for sheep but he blew through 48 head in a matter of a few hours including setting up twice. There aren’t many sheep left out here on the landscape anymore and even fewer sheepshearers. It still goes about the same as when I was a lad only the equipment is more modern and we no longer have to tie each fleece into a small bale in the wool box. The fleeces are all compressed into a large burlap wool bag with a hydraulic press. While wool buyers don’t want natural colored wool, frequently the hand spinners will so they must be kept separate. To accomplish this, a man of the cloth was suddenly present so we pressed him into action. We’ll just call him Preacher to protect the innocent. He assisted us in packing some of the black fleeces into individual bags. Well, the Lord certainly does work in mysterious ways.
Ruby and Fudgie continue to enjoy chores more than anything. It’s their opportunity to let off steam after being cooped up for a part of the day. They just launch themselves out the door and not unlike their human counterparts, take spills on the ice especially when they’re wrestling. One major difference however: they have built-in cleats and it’s humorous to see the scarifications they’ve left behind on the ice. Not so humorous if you fall on your rump and examine them more closely.
Girl Scout cookies to the rescue! Seems I’ve made a few trips back and forth to Rochester the past several weeks and as a result, haven’t made the time to force myself to eat. On several occasions, the Dairy Queen I like to frequent was closed, making it impossible to relay the malt price there to the rest of my little fat buddies. What to do? Suddenly it dawned on me: there are several boxes of Girl Scout cookies in my stash in the pickup thanks to Betsy’s crafty salesmanship, er, salesgirlship. Pulling off at an exit, I was able to get the box and cellophane wrapper open to indulge in one of life’s guilty pleasures, a box of Tagalongs. By the time I reached home there was a dead soldier on the seat beside me. Another one bites the dust.
See you next week…real good then.
The scurs had a better go of it this past week, predicting snow although someone forgot to turn off the rinse cycle first. Will we see more white or clear precipitation this week? Starting Wednesday, partly cloudy with a high near 30 and a low around 20. Mostly cloudy with a modest chance of snow on Thursday with highs of 25 and lows falling to 5 above. Mostly cloudy on Friday with highs of 15 and lows dropping to near zero. Becoming partly cloudy on Saturday with highs again around 15 and lows near 5 above. Mostly sunny on Sunday with highs rebounding back in to the low 20’s with lows near 5 above. Mostly sunny and warmer on Monday with highs in the mid-20’s and lows of 20. Mostly cloudy on Tuesday with a chance of snow. Highs near 25 and lows around 20. The normal high for the next made up holiday on the 18th is 29 and the normal low is 11. The scurs will be taking off the 18th anyway to celebrate George Kennedy’s birthday. After all, he won an Oscar for his role in Cool Hand Luke.
Precipitation has rebounded somewhat from the dry month of January with amounts having eclipsed that month’s total already on the 11th at the ranch. So far for the month we’ve tallied .95”. While there’s no dispute that we’re not operating with a full soil profile, we have made some progress towards lessening the drought. Looking at the most recent update from NOAA shows a big swatch of green that says “Improvement” over our general geography. What’s even a little more heartening is both the 30 and 90-day outlooks also show better-than-even odds that we will receive above normal precipitation. Not that one wants to make book on it, but it sure is better than the opposite. We continue to see some snow cover as well so one has to believe that our chance of gardening outdoors as early as last year may not be as good.
Last weekend’s wet, windy weather seemed to bring one of our fat resident squirrels out for a snack before the weather decides to cool back down again. It also kept the redpolls busy at the feeders along with the full complement of chickadees, woodpeckers, nuthatches and blue jays. The cardinals appear to be staying around too with safflower being supplied for their enjoyment. The juncos have learned as well that there is some cracked corn they share along with cleaning up the squirrel’s leftovers. Saw the first pheasant in several weeks go sailing across the bottom of the pasture and into the CRP on Saturday morning while having my morning coffee. Long time no see.
Saturday morning brought the arrival of the first of what promises to be many new lambs at the ranch. There had been a ewe off by herself in the barn when it was feeding time during evening chores so we were positive by the time we came home from a scheduled birthday party, we’d see newbies. Of course when we arrived home, the ewe was in the barn alright, but she did nothing other than to stare blankly at me when I went out to check on her. Rather than have an all-night staring contest I opted to go back in the house for some shuteye. In the morning there was a bouncing baby buck lamb without all the drama. He has already grown in the past couple days to the point when he got out of the jug, he was tough to catch. Of course we didn’t schedule the shearer until the following weekend so we’ll probably have a few more lambs before then for good measure. The fun never stops at the ranch.
I made one of those trips back home I’d been dreading after hearing that an old friend and classmate of mine had passed away. Oddly enough he was the first one of our graduating class to leave us, as I understood it developing an infection that he was unable to overcome. The weather on Sunday did not sound good and in the morning, it lived up to its billing. After church I had my doubts about travelling east. By afternoon however there was a break in the precipitation on the radar and I decided it was go time. I’ll never regret it either. Our class of ’76 was a relatively tight knit group and even though many of us are scattered to the four winds, from a class of 72 students, about 20 of us were in attendance.
Scott Copeman was the unforgettable friend that every young man should be fortunate enough to have. He was one of those guys with an infectious giggle who would get you started laughing, often so hard you couldn’t stop. In junior high, I still remember him and Kenny Laube walking from Kenny’s house, fording the Spring Valley Creek and climbing over fences to get to our pasture where we started a fire to heat up a can of beans. Maybe it was the fact we as friends had done it or were laughing about how soaking wet they got, but for some reason those were still some of the tastiest beans I ever remember eating. Then there were the fishing trips and the laughs we shared as well as the fish we caught.
When we were seniors, Scott was in the boat where we were fishing crappies on 1st Crow Wing one sunny May morning. I hooked a large northern on a beetle spin and we were shocked as the line began rapidly stripping off the reel. When I got it up close to the boat he was on the stick with the net, getting the fish in the boat just before it managed to spit the hook. We looked at each other in disbelief as it flopped on the bottom of the boat and what else? Started laughing! Somewhere I think I still have a photo of that fish.
I’d come home on the weekends from college and remember driving the Gremlin down to Scott and Carol’s place in Ostrander to visit after they were married. We’d have a few libations and laugh so hard we’d cry well into the wee hours of the morning, recounting our glory days and the characters involved. I still recall how my sides ached the next day and now tragically, I still shed a tear. Thanks Scott for making our lives a happier place.
See you next week…real good then.