I have begun to feed hay out to the animals now. There is a little feed left in the fields but they are grazing very low to the ground now. And my fields are very young. There are lots of dried off tops which I have left to shade whatever legume may struggle through from below. This is no time to be topping. Too hot and dry. My plan had been to feed the animals in the fields until November. Hmm. 
Without rain that is not going to happen. Feeding hay in the summer is like sitting on a thorn. 
We were very naughty yesterday and put the sprinkler on the roof to make some cool pretend rain. And to test my theory that it would cool the house. 
It watered all the front gardens beautifully and inside the verandah the hot breeze was morphed into a cool breeze as it wafted through the pretend raindrops. 
I turned it off once the waterbarrels were filled from the gutters. Fun as it was we cannot waste water now. The well is not bottomless and I have heard of a few people running out of water already. Still it was fun for a few minutes. 
After work Our John went out and cut the alfalfa field. Much to Big Dogs dismay, it is his favourite field to lie in. 
Now the green hay needs to lay on the stubble and dry for about four days. No rain now please. We are going to be feeding the animals hay for longer than usual this year, due to the lack of growth in the fields, so we need to get this hay into the barn at its highest nutrition level. It is too short, so there will not be a lot, but see how it is already flowering. Once it starts to flower the protein levels are dropping. It is only two acres of hay, but we do not feed our animals corn so I do not settle until I have two hundred bales of some kind of hay in the barn. We have about 130 bales of hay so far plus I am feeding out already. So fingers crossed.
Good morning. As I write this morning it is raining to the North but our crickets are still loud and dry and the morning doves are calling out in the dawn dark, so we are safe for the moment.
Have a lovely day.
celi
On this day last year .. I had just returned from an overnight stay in Chicago. Utilitarian to Utopia. I love the grandness of some of the old buildings up in the big city.
The Kitchen's Garden 
66 responses to “Country Air Conditioning”
I’m keeping my fingers crossed too Celi that all goes well and the hay is neatly stacked in the barn at week’s end. And what a creative way to enjoy a brief rain shower, water the plants and collect water in the rain barrels! I was looking for a picture of you, Our John and the Tall Teenager all dancing below the sprinkler though!!! XO
John was at work or he would growled about wasting water!! While the cate away and etc!
Saw on the news last night how horrible this weather has been and may be to farmers; hope you hang in there.
That hammock looks like it could have been a hotly contested seat 🙂 Hope it was yours! Go make hay while the sun shines. Laura
You were able to last longer on pasture than my two uncles in North Arkansas. They’ve been haying for a month now, and took some of the cattle to market early…
I employed the Air Conditioner trick last Friday while I weeded…plants (in the beds without soaker hoses) got a good drink, and the heat was tolerable until almost 1!
Good luck with the hay!
it actually makes quite a difference to weed close to the sprinkler, I do that too sometimes!! c
The best of luck to you during your struggle with the water situation. I read your posts with bated breath. I hope that you have rain when you need it, and none when you don’t…but we’ll all see what Mother Nature has in store. In the meantime, seems that there’s a lot of love at your place, holding man and beast together.
I love big dog and his favourite field.
I hope you don’t have any rain before you have a chance to bring in the hay……..e
I wonder if you could install misters around the porches? It would do the same thing and they use much less water. We’ve had perfect weather here…in the mid 80’s. Once it hits the 90’s it’s much too hot. How scary that a well could run out of water! What then?
Hope you stay cool today! ~ April
Misters are a fantastic idea..If the well runs out i cry! c
My parents always put a sprinkler on the roof to cool down the house when the weather was extremely hot. We had a well also, and it would start spilling sand through the taps when the aquifers were too low. I’m glad that my mum doesn’t have to worry about such things now that she’s moved into assisted living accommodation. She doesn’t even have to cook anymore!
We had rain this morning but it’s been dry for a few hours now. Time to hang a few shirts on the line to dry I think.
Good morning to you all, and best wishes for a happy and calm day. xx
I have become worried with the amount of dirt coming up through the taps, it is even getting into the bath, there is nothigng we can do but cut down even further on water consumption. to start buying water from town would be outrageous! This week we do not want rain, by next week we will be begging for rain.. c
Hay season already – I was at a farm in Rhode Island last weekend, and they were starting to dry hay as well. It’s a bit cooler here this morning, but who knows with this weather!
Indeed, anything can happen once the hay is cut! morning Ksenia.. c
I love that you made pretend rain and I don’t think you wasted too much!
have a happy day Celia and here’s hoping the rain stays away for the next few days.
🙂 Mandy
I have to turn a corner in my life and your blog has inspired me to get more into the land I have!
You have lovely trees too I have noticed, that is great for stock.. this is something i sorely lack.. c
We used to hose down our stucco house early in the morning on hot days to get the evaporative cooling, as well as to close and cover all windows. When the temperature dropped or a breeze came up we’d throw all the windows open for cross-drafts. After many droughts we gave up the house-cooling practice, but our thick lathe and plaster walls keep the house cool on most days.
In the morning when it is cool i run around and close everything, those plaster walls sound just the thing for a hot area.. c
Life rarely goes the way we plan it, especially if we’re counting on the weather. 🙂
Clever idea with the water and none wasted either! some people here in the glen too have been without water after their springs have failed. No rain in Scotland? it’s what we’re famous for!!!!
Christine
Oh No.. you are right.. no rain in scotland sounds outrageous! c
Minnesota is one of the few states which has had adequate rainfall, although not in all regions. Some hay brokers can’t meet the demand for hay coming in from other states. I remember when my father had to buy boxcars of hay from Montana in 1976 to feed his dairy and beef cattle due to a drought in Minnesota. His very livelihood depended on keeping his animals alive to provide an income for his family.
hmm, it must be grim when you have a large herd.. c