Still Cold and Windy —- April 29, 2014

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Dayphoto

What a cold and windy day we had yesterday…and the day before….and again today! I’m holding onto the hope that calmer weather is heading in by the weekend. It sure needs too.

Some of the sweet corn has already been planted (no, we don’t raise sweet corn), but that that drew the early lottery already have the seed in the ground, just waiting for the weather to warm up before they put the water to the seed. Sweet corn harvest is timed to come off every two weeks starting around the 4th of July and ending in late September. Those that get the extremely early or the extremely late lottery always have a crap shoot going in…weather (the house) can be the winner in most cases.

The wind blew gusts of 40 m.p.h most of the day until late in the night, slowing down some, but back up again this morning. The weather people say to expect 35 m.p.h. gusts today. Freeze warning are in effect until Wednesday at 10 a.m. I’m pretty sure the fruit is all gone…I just don’t know how it could make it through all of this wind and extreme cold.

This Boomer on the run…he didn’t come when called so he had to hurry in behind me.

Fuzz always waits for me. He used to like to get out and chase the water, but not anymore.

Back home the cats know just what it takes to make life good

Now what more could you ask for? 🙂

Still all in all I thought the sunset was a perfect spot of Bling at the end of the day!

Linda

June 19, 2013

Posted on June 19, 2013 by Dayphoto

Since it has been so hot we drove up to Lee’s Reservoir for a morning of relaxation.

The dogs loved the swim and everyone loved the break.

Sometimes you just have to get away for a couple of hours. In this case we took three hours out of the day. When we got back the wind was blowing with gusts up to 30 m.p.h.

The weather people are saying we can expect the same again today. The wind should help in clearing out all the smoke which came in over-night from the fire in Utah.

Fire is such a sad part of summer.

Linda

Smoke Season

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Dayphoto

The whole problem with spring!

Today I’m sick. Too much smoke yesterday. So I spent last night with an asthma attack and hay fever…today it feels more like a cold. Sure am tired of the long drawn out ‘not feeling good’ time.

Anyway, things should get better as a cold front is moving in late Wednesday night (I saw a sun dog this morning) complete with high winds and even rain turning over to snow.

The storm is supposed to move on out by Friday so at least the air quality here will improve!

Linda

May 15, 2012

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Dayphoto

We had another high wind come through again. Wind without rain.

Just wind.

Our cottonwood tree must have decided it was time to shed a couple of limbs so as the wind blew, down came some limbs.

Thankfully the branch that holds the rope swing was not the one shed. And the climbing branches are still there, just waiting for one or three little grandchildren to climb on.

These two branches came from somewhere up top, lightening the load just a little bit for this wonderful old tree.

Linda

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Posted on March 27, 2012 by Dayphoto

Terry has finished getting the corn fields ready for the fertilizer. Moving from former bean ground to corn ground doesn’t take as much tractor work. First he disked the already mellow soil (beans are good for the soil), then he leveled. Here is is leveling, which means he is filling in any hollows and removing any hills that the wind and water created over the last year. It needs to have a little fall so the water can start at one end and run to the other end.

Finished! (Complete with a little dirt devil). Next we will add fertilizer, then roll in the fertilizer, then mark it out (so the water can run from the top of the field to the bottom) and start water.

I don’t do tractor work, but I do irrigate. Irrigation should start the first week in April on this field and on the already planted alfalfa fields.

Terry ripped up an old alfalfa field (they have to be torn up every 3-5 years to keep the hay produced full of healthy rich hay, instead of mostly weeds), which will go into corn. We will put water on that field around the second or third week in April.

The upper end (which burned in the fire) will be worked up and planted to alfalfa. He will do it sometime in April. It had corn in it, but since we are losing the largest field he likes to have a certain amount of hay to sell every year. Usually Terry plants a mother crop with the hay, but this year he is going to ‘thick seed’ it. Meaning only the very, very expensive alfalfa seed will be planted, a planted very thickly to choke out the weeds.

Old corn ground has to be plowed. We have lots of clay in our soil so plowing is the best way to go. Old corn ground is the only ground we plow. Plowing takes all the old stalks and leaves, turns it under in the soil where it breaks down adding richness to clay-type of soil. More work with the tractor, but way better results.

This field will become a pinto bean field next year. We do rotational farming, which helps the soil and the plants the next year.

The nasty high winds have left our area for a spell. I worked in my yard all day yesterday and came in looking like a fresh dug potato. Its a wee bit cooler, but HEY no wind.

I take it!

Linda

Cold Front Moves Through

Posted on May 12, 2010 by Dayphoto

(Taken at 4:00 p.m. on my way home from work)

A horrible, high wind/cold front hit here yesterday morning bringing with it freezing temperatures and high winds gusting 45-50 m.p.h., the temperatures only getting to around 58*.

The mountain behind our place is the Uncompahgre Plateau, which borders Colorado and Utah. Therefore, whenever we get high winds we get dirt from Utah.

I felt really bad for Terry because he was still planting corn in the bitter cold wind. Planting doesn’t stop just because a person is cold. Anyway, as you noticed the tractor he plants with doesn’t have a cab so not only does he have to work in the cold he has to work in the dust.

(This is Grand Mesa…I keep waiting for the snow to go. Not yet.)

The wind was amazing. When I was helping him irrigate (once water is started it is never turned off until harvest) we would sometimes be almost knocked off our feet. I truly understand the term ‘being blown over’.

(Dust from Utah, the sky was a brownish red.)

Night time temperatures only dropped to 38* but today is not much better for warmth only getting up to 61* and dropping below the freezing point tonight.

But I’m ready.