And the drought continues. We haven't had any rain to speak of for about two months and the pond is looking pretty low at the moment. I'm glad we didn't get the livestock now, as it would have been a full time job to keep them cool and watered. This week it has been hovering around the 100F mark, making it hard to stay out long enough to do any work.
We did get a good harvest of blackberries though. About none gallons in all off two main bushes. We are watching the persimmon trees now, to grab them before the deer come in and steal them. Most of the trees we planted earlier in the year seem to be hanging in there. The elderberries seem a little eaten up but apart from that, everything else still has leaves on.
I plan to get another package of trees again this year to plant along the top fence line, eventually building a living fence that will reinforce the wire fence as well as produce both fruit and nuts.
The vegetable garden has taken a big hit from both the dry weather and the grasshopper invasion. I erected a row cover over the peanuts I planted, but it was too late for the potatoes and onions. We pulled the onions and salvaged what we could.
We have been experimenting with ways to cut hay on a small scale this year. I tried a scythe but the snathe (handle) was too short for me, making it hard to use. Then I tried the trimmer with the string head and then a brush cutter disc. This was okay but was slow going. Then I started looking at the DR Trimmer. This is a string trimmer with wheels. This seemed the perfect tool for the job but the price was too high for our current budget. I then found a cheaper one made by Husqvarna at Lowes. The first one we bought practically fell apart on me, so we exchanged it and so far the new one is working well. Once we have it cut, we haul the hay down to the barn where we have a hand baler to make square bales. This is not top quality hay, but I will be able to use it at least for bedding or for mulching, even if the livestock won't eat it.
