Tuesday, July 7, 2009

And the Heat Goes On

If you saw my post about the The Flowers in the Creek , you saw how the wet weather creek behind our house looked in May. We'd had a little rain. Not much, but enough to keep things going. Wildflowers were blooming, the grasses were green. It got pretty warm in May, but not unbearable.
The 'Deer Grove' was green. There were lots of Mexican Hats blooming and some nice grasses.

Then, we moved into June. We had one of the warmest Junes in Austin history. Many days were record breaking heat. And....no rain. In the whole month of June, we had less than an inch of rain, here at the house.

So now, this is what the creek looks like...

and the 'Deer Grove'. Weeks of 100+ degree days, and no rain do take their toll.

Yesterday morning, there was a nice rain to the north of Austin. Last evening, there was a nice rain to south of us here....in fact, a good rain came down the Blanco River, about two miles from us. We had a good 'shower'...not enough to register on the rain gauge. But, we enjoyed every minute of it, sitting on the covered porch, watching and listening to the rain.....even as little as it was.

All the weather forecasters say we'll be back to the triple digit temperatures before the week is out. And, our chances of more rain are slim to none. This drought has gone on for some 22 months now.

I feel bad for all the critters. It's so dry, there's little for them to eat. We keep the birdbaths filled with water.

And, it seems to be appreciated.
And, sometimes, seed gets 'accidentally' dropped beneath the feeders.

And, it gets goobled up in a hurry.

There's a fine for feeding the deer here, but accidents will happen, and things get ....er....dropped here and there. I know I complain about them eating my plants. But, I do understand, they need to eat.

We're all hoping this drought comes to an end sometime soon. Water restrictions are making this gardening experience a bit more difficult. And more than that, there are wells going dry close by, and having to be dug deeper. That's a bit scary, especially since we're less than half way through summer.

And the heat goes on.....

3 comments:

  1. Oh wow, I completely understand. We have deer here, but luckily there is still plenty of green. We have had a wet spring and summer, but the bugs are bad and blackspot is horrid. We just have humidity, Southern Indiana is known for it, for good reason. ~Brooke

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  2. It's so hard on the wildlife at this time of year. I know they are grateful for the water you leave out for them. I think I'm going to put out a little bucket of water for the deer. The birds and toads have the advantage of using our pond in the backyard.

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  3. I hope you guys get a break from the heat soon. Sometimes it can be unbearable. I lived in Plano, TX for only three months and I thought that was hot. Nice blog.
    Rosey

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