Ready or Not

Here comes Rita.

We are 14 inches behind in rainfall for the year. The ranch's rain log shows us very dry beginning in February and rainfall running 30 to 40% of normal since then.

A 75 year old rancher next to me told me, "I cannot remember it being this dry. I have ponds that are empty that have never been empty."

A biologist who I see at the local Gas Station told me that he has never seen such drought conditions in his plant studies. And he has been in the North Texas area for over 30 years.

Everyone has been on hay this summer. Cows all around me are thin, some with ribs showing, when they should be getting fat.

Hay harvests are running at 40% of normal. A bottom across from me gave 90 bales total this summer when it usually gives 300.

Here at the Ponderosa we have spent more money than usual on our winter pastures. We have carefully disced our fields, put out a mixture of ryegrass, rye, wheat and turnips along with a lot of 17-17-17-4 fertilizer - and this was after feeding hay for 45 days on these fields - the equivalent of 1 ton of manure per acre was applied.

Now we need rain.

And we just may get it.

The only problem is that we plan to work 300 mommas and their babies this weekend.

So what to do? Postpone it? Or go for it?

One the plus side is we get it done. A good worming translates into extra gain.

But the negatives are not getting it done before the storm hits. Then having some cows bunched in metal pens while there is lightening around. Not good.

So looks like we will postpone and just enjoy the rain this weekend. If we get a few inches, we should have knee high grass by Thanksgiving.