A Deer Friend of mine.
Out of Sight Out of Mind?
I started this glorious day off at 6 am watering my neighbors planters on their back deck overlooking the lake. In my eyes a soothing and blissful task, made all the more joyful by the fact that this had been my parents ‘dream home’ and participating in its ongoing splendor allows me very special moments of connection despite Mom and Dad’s ‘ascension’.
I then returned home (right next door) to attend my own little slice of heaven, our well protected veggie,herb and flower garden. Not a huge fan of cyclone fencing-okay not even a mediocre fan-however with the abundance of beloved wildlife,our garden in little ‘ole’ Lake Shastina,would be gone in a New York minute!!!
I love to hand water by the pailful, scooping up rabbit poo enhanced water and supplying each container with precious nutrients and just enough water to do the job. We placed PVC pipes within our garden containers with holes drilled along its length to disperse the water to the roots where it’s needed. I can also see the rate at which the plants drink up and have come to know when it’s satiated!
Zucchini with PVC water system next to blossom
My garden project this year has been very personal and renewing. I started virtually everything from seed and it brought a heightened experience of nurturing! As a matter of fact a method I used to increase pollination on tomato plants is absolutely hilarious but a hint beyond a “G” rating so if you want the “DIRT” on that little escapade please leave a comment. and I’ll ‘fess up”….. I got a bit sidetracked but will attempt to reign in my thoughts!
Back to present !!!
As I sit overlooking the lake upon which I live, watching the “weekenders” that travel here to ride jet skis and pleasure boats, I Can’t help but feel so tremendously blessed to have water in the lake. Although the level does recede as the farmers and ranchers irrigate, WE HAVE WATER! That is not the case for a tremendous portion of our country!
When I witness expansive lawns being watered I cringe a bit. When I see them watered in the heat of the day I froth and tick!
Don’t get me wrong, each and every person has an absolute right to the landscape of their dreams and choosing, It is just that when I hear from a friend in Nebraska that her garden is decimated by the drought, my heart breaks for her, many have water restrictions, and if you exceed your allotment, rates and fines can be enormous! So you are forced to witness the withering death of what had the promise of joy,beauty and bounty.
We are advocates of home gardening, the owners of a ‘Mom & Pop’ operation committed to providing goods and services towards sustainability. Please feel free to take a look at what we offer. But regardless of where you purchase-GARDEN ON!!!
Here in Eastern Nebraska the drought has been terrible. The corn crop around here is gone–normally the corn would be green and 8-10 ft. tall–it is brown and half the size it should be. Some stalks never even produced ears. It is that way with the corn in my own personal garden. Our raspberries are nearly dead, our peppers never bloomed or produced at all, no cucumbers, beans are dead as well as our blueberries. We have been on water restrictions where I live for the last month or so and the Elkhorn and Platte Rivers are so low and parts are so dried, you could walk across the sandbars from one bank to the other and not get wet at all. Almost all the grass is completely brown and dried up. I have seen squirrels breaking open sticks and what few garden veggies we have to suck moisture out of them. It is sad and the worst I ever remember . We have had a few rain showers the past week–our first drops in more than 42 days but not even close to ending the drought. The ground is terribly cracked everywhere here.
Rene thank you for sharing your personal account. It puts faces and names to those living this reality. My prayers are with the people and animals in this region