Biggest crop ever

The scurs and the Weather Eye were in control again with slight amounts of precip with a return to September. Do we turn the calendar over to October and find more cooling and precip or does summer make one more run at us? Starting on Thursday, sunny with highs in the upper 70’s and lows in the low 50’s. Mostly sunny on Friday with highs in the upper 70’s and lows in the mid-50’s. Mostly sunny on Saturday with a slight chance of rain. Highs in the upper 70’s with lows in the mid-50’s. Sunday, mostly sunny with a fair chance of forenoon rain. Highs in the upper 70’s with lows in the upper 50’s. Mostly sunny on Monday with an increasing chance of rain into the evening hours. Highs in the mid-70’s with lows in the low 50’s. Tuesday October 1st, cloudy with a fair chance of rain. Highs in the mid-60’s with lows in the upper 40’s. Mostly sunny on Wednesday with highs in the low 60’s and lows in the mid-40’s. The normal high for October 1st is 67 and the normal low is 44. The cooler days find the scurs trying to locate their long winter gatkes just in case.

 

No sign of winter just yet in area fields as harvest is starting to get off the ground. Some soybeans have been combined and yields aren’t necessarily the disaster some feared. Most reported yields are in the 50 – 60 bushel per acre range so far, realizing that there have been relatively few acres combined yet. Some limited corn harvest, although silage has been cut locally. Something area homeowners noticed last week was the sudden influx of uninvited houseguests in the form of multi-colored Asian ladybeetles. Will be a long six to seven months. There have also been reports of “no-see-ums” outdoors, which in this case are actually minute pirate bugs. They are not the same thing as the smaller biting midges commonly found in more northerly climes, especially during the spring months. Like the ladybeetles, minute pirate bugs feed on small soft-bodied insects such as aphids. When the corn and soybeans are nearing maturity as they are now, the pirate bugs run out of aphids to eat, move out of the crops and into areas where humans frequent. They may attempt to taste-test humans, causing an irritating bite. Luckily they don’t spread disease and are less apt to bother on cooler days.

 

In the backyard we continue to see the hummingbirds as they move through on their migration south. When the weather began to cool, their numbers seemed to start making a subtle decline. They’re still here, just not as many or as active when the morning temps are in the 40’s. There have been some other infrequent visitors such as a red-breasted nuthatch. We see them occasionally, although their visits are usually of short duration. What has probably been the most attractive to the bird population has been the birdbath. It needs to be filled daily as the robins in particular like splashing about in it. With the lack of rain, there haven’t been many puddles or earthworms for them to eat. They’ve apparently been enjoying the nannyberries as many mornings, nannyberry pits frequently line the bottom of the birdbath. When the last of the jelly is gone from the oriole feeder, it’ll soon be time to put one of the suet feeders out again. Had best check the supply on that as I suspect we may be fresh out.

 

The apple trees at the ranch have produced their biggest crop ever, coming at a cost. As I mentioned in an earlier column, as loaded as they became, there has been structural damage to the trees that will need to be dealt with to salvage them. Getting the apples all picked off them first will be the first step. The apple quality has been exceptional. An apple crisp made from the Haralson apples revealed some of the brightest flavored apples ever. Despite all the scab on the outside of the apples, the insides were pristine with very little evidence of insect pests. Honeycrisps have been the same way. The biggest disappointment was the pear crop. After seeing a good pollination season unfold, things went downhill from there. Scab set in and many of the lower set fruit dropped prematurely in several wind events. The ground had become so hard that the fruit that was set higher up fell with such force that the pears were split open well before they could be taken in the house to ripen. Pretty sure the bunnies and deer enjoyed them though.

 

Sad news on Tuesday morning when I read about Schwan’s closing down their home delivery operation. We had the Schwan’s man stop at the farm when I was growing up. It was always fun to see what Mom had ordered, especially the ice cream treats. The offerings were high quality, and, while the prices weren’t cheap, the products weren’t usually available in the local grocery store. And the ice cream was exceptional. We had the Schwan’s man stop at the ranch for many years as well. It was great to have something warm and wholesome on hand we could make quickly, especially when our schedules made getting to the grocery store difficult. Fast forward to the sale of the company. A name change to Yelloh. Huh? It’s been Schwan’s forever. Dumb move. Tie delivery charges to the dollar amount of product ordered. OK, I get it, then don’t move the goalposts when discounts are applied. Product availability also became erratic. The cardinal sin, however, was to mess with the ice cream recipe, particularly the vanilla. It suddenly tasted no better than the bargain brand stuff from the grocery store. RIP Schwan’s.

 

Poppy keeps getting a little more freedom as we’ve been able to trust her when leaving her for extended periods. She still needs to go out every so many hours, however, so one needs to mindful of that. One morning we had one of those fun-size thundershowers approaching. It was still a little over an hour out according to the radar, but Poppy was super about waking me up, so she could go outside to do her business. About 15 minutes before the storm arrived, Poppy was back, pawing at me again. This time I thought it was just the thunderstorm getting her riled up, so I rolled over and went back to sleep. She relented and left me alone. We did chores about an hour later and came back in the house for breakfast. When I went to fill Poppy’s food and water bowls, I happened to glance over under the dining room table. Oopsie! Poppy had left a dog log trail, apparently as a result of my ignoring her pleas earlier. Not a big deal and my fault. Lesson learned. Ignore the Corgi at your own peril.

 

See you next week…real good then.