Thursday, August 25, 2011
And MORE rain!
As of this morning! My goodness, I am adoring this "trough" we are having! We are now at a full inch and a half! W00T! That means the whole acreage got a good wetting, and it will be easier for the grass to bounce back with irrigation. That also means that this is the LAST load of hay I am buying! ~does the happy dance~
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
In other news....
Since I seem to be suffering from insomnia...or maybe it is simply tough to sleep with a broken elbow when you can't take the pain medication because it makes you sick....
We have managed to clean out the old well bore on the property. Actually, we have two old well bores, neither of which have been used since 1989, or later. This one turns out to be 90 feet and looks like it will give us 10 gpm of good, clean water.
What that means down here in drought-stricken Texas is that the goats and rescue horses get to eat. Is it that bad? Oh yes it is. Grass round bales are going for over $100 each for a 4x6. 10 acres of what used to be lush pasture can't keep 3 horses fed. You don' even want to know what dairy quality hay is going for. Let's just say that for now, the goats are on pellet alfalfa...which is expensive, but not as expensive as poor quality hay.
So the horses get to eat. They will not suffer the fate of those poor things about a 1/2 mile down the road from me that starved to death while A/C wrung their hands because there is NO room for horses.
Two properties down from me there is a dead cow in the field. It starved to death on the overgrazed, depleted pasture. It is so hot and dry here right now (yes, even with today's rain) that the cow has been there for a week *and it isn't rotting*. There is no smell, no stench. The thing is dehydrating and mummifying there in the field. The buzzards haven't even touched it.
So, that is why the working well is a BIG deal. Our groundwater supplies here in the Brazos River Basin are healthy and fine, it is just getting that water to the surface. A well for irrigation will save us.
Okay, comparison.:)
Last summer, my pasture with cute goats in it:
This summer, the SAME pasture, with horses in it (the goats are getting dry-lotted in the barn due to the heat:
Both pictures were taken during high summer. You do not EVEN want to see my pond.
For other homesteaders, this is a thought: See to your water. Mama Nature is NOT kind and sweet, she is grumpy and given to moodiness. Yes, irrigation averages out to $71 an acre in operating costs and $112 an acre in initial investment....but when you REALLY need it, nothing else will do the trick.
I hope to see my pasture looking like it did last year. At this time, though, I don't think anything is going to save most of the trees.
We have managed to clean out the old well bore on the property. Actually, we have two old well bores, neither of which have been used since 1989, or later. This one turns out to be 90 feet and looks like it will give us 10 gpm of good, clean water.
What that means down here in drought-stricken Texas is that the goats and rescue horses get to eat. Is it that bad? Oh yes it is. Grass round bales are going for over $100 each for a 4x6. 10 acres of what used to be lush pasture can't keep 3 horses fed. You don' even want to know what dairy quality hay is going for. Let's just say that for now, the goats are on pellet alfalfa...which is expensive, but not as expensive as poor quality hay.
So the horses get to eat. They will not suffer the fate of those poor things about a 1/2 mile down the road from me that starved to death while A/C wrung their hands because there is NO room for horses.
Two properties down from me there is a dead cow in the field. It starved to death on the overgrazed, depleted pasture. It is so hot and dry here right now (yes, even with today's rain) that the cow has been there for a week *and it isn't rotting*. There is no smell, no stench. The thing is dehydrating and mummifying there in the field. The buzzards haven't even touched it.
So, that is why the working well is a BIG deal. Our groundwater supplies here in the Brazos River Basin are healthy and fine, it is just getting that water to the surface. A well for irrigation will save us.
Okay, comparison.:)
Last summer, my pasture with cute goats in it:
This summer, the SAME pasture, with horses in it (the goats are getting dry-lotted in the barn due to the heat:
Both pictures were taken during high summer. You do not EVEN want to see my pond.
For other homesteaders, this is a thought: See to your water. Mama Nature is NOT kind and sweet, she is grumpy and given to moodiness. Yes, irrigation averages out to $71 an acre in operating costs and $112 an acre in initial investment....but when you REALLY need it, nothing else will do the trick.
I hope to see my pasture looking like it did last year. At this time, though, I don't think anything is going to save most of the trees.
It's RAINING!
Oh my God, it's RAINING! I don't believe it! Over an inch already and we might even get a total of 2 inches by tonight! W00T! ~happy dance~ It's raining, it's pouring! The old man is snoring!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)