The monsoon season is also known as the rainy season, coming about due to a shift in wind directions that bring excessive rainfall. Right up from the Gulf of Mexico to us.
July is our monsoon season, some years it misses us all together, but we’ve been lucky. The other side of the Continental Divide in our state (Colorado) is very, very dry.
On the other hand all the moisture is causing havock with the second cutting of hay. If the alfalfa is cut then rained on you can pretty much weep tears. Rained on hay loses much of it’s food value.
Once cut it takes around 6-7 days of hot drying weather, less if you can get hot drying weather with a little wind. Then the good weather has to hold with enough moisture (dew) in the morning to bale. Baling with dew is good for it keep the little leaves attached to the stem of the plant. The little leaves are where the food value is…a dry old stem is pretty much like eating straw.
Terry’s cutting the small field today…it’s suppose to be nice for about six or seven days in a row so he is chancing it.
Then on Friday or Saturday he will cut the large field.
After that we hold our breath hoping the rain stays away until we get it baled and stacked.
One nice thing about the weather…the sky is ever so dramatic!
Then after each wild storm rolls through the sun comes out and there is a rainbow!
🙂
Linda
Life on a Colorado Farm 