Country Roads

So it’s a guessing time right now for farmers, ranchers and gardeners. It’s been mostly dry, lacking in rains, along with recent warmer temperatures and high winds. It’s time for farmers to begin to plant corn. Some have started planting and some are waiting until more rain is received. Some farmers have done their research and found that some varieties of soybean seeds can be planted before the corn seeds. They are proceeding to plant those soybean varieties.

Some farmers are trying to get bales that were left in the fields and along the fields, loaded and moved home. Those bales may be needed if the pastures doesn’t receive needed rain. Pasture fence is being checked and repairs made. Cattle are usually moved to the pastures the first part of May but with the lack of rain, the grass has been slow to grow and green up. Some ranchers and farmers are concerned about the lack of rains and water in ponds. The guessing game continues until it chooses to rain once again. Do the cattle get moved to the pastures when it’s time? If they are moved, does water have to be hauled to the stock tanks?

Another guessing game is viewing and digging in the wheat fields to see how the wheat is doing since it was such a dry winter. Winter kill is guessed as to why the wheat has not come up in large areas in the wheat fields. Will there be an okay wheat yield this year or should an insurance agent be called to see what he thinks? Will the wheat field need to be torn up and fall crops planted instead?

Gardeners are thinking about planting. When will the colder nights end so planting can be done. It’s time to trim off the dead stems and to clean up the flower beds. It was noted that the warmer thean normal daytime high temperatures have drawn out the new peony starts, and tulips and daffodils are blooming. Even the wild plum bushes are bursting in full blooms but with below freezing nighttime low temperatures lately ,will that kill off the blooms? Do we begin watering the flower beds and the young trees? Maybe it’s best to wait and see if rains come soon.

Farming, ranching and gardening have always presented guessing dilemmas and taking chances. Prayers for rains to soon arrive.