Changeable Spring Weather

About six weeks ago I was excited.  For the first time in a year, we'd gotten enough rainfall to actually have mud in the paddocks.  Not a lot of mud, but enough that in the places where my cattle congregate, they were squelching around and leaving their footprints behind.  I have never in my life been so excited about mud as I was then.  I never thought I'd ever be excited to have mud.

We still had puddles on the surface, but they were fewer and the ground around them was softening.

The paddocks have greened up and the grass has more than doubled in a week.

Then the gale force Nor'Westers started up.  For those unfamiliar with the Canterbury Nor'Wester - it's a foehn wind.  A hot dry wind that doesn't just dry up the land, it also causes all sorts of problems for people in it's path.  From migraines to increased suicide rates.

It got very hot very quickly.  What was supposed to be Spring gardening, became trying to find a shady spot that we could work in and still be following our plan.  Any work done out in the sun was in short bursts punctuated frequently by cold drink breaks and excuses to get in the shade.

Thanks to El Nino, we're forecast for another hot dry summer.  Local farmers are already getting nervous about paddock growth and making silage and hay as fast as they can.  Hay is becoming like gold.

For several weeks, we were seeing forecasts of a cold front and wet weather coming just a couple of days away.  Like last year though, that always seems to be a few days away and we just don't quite get it.

We had several days of 30 degrees Celsius.  All my gardening plans went out the window.  I shifted two wheelbarrow loads of stones and that was my limit.  I found myself almost making excuses to hide out inside.

The weather seemed to settle down and become consistently warmer with only the odd oppressively hot day.  I started to plant out the corn I'd started inside from seeds, I planted out my beans and I've planted out my potatoes.

Then I was excited about the rain this week.  We needed it and it was very welcome.

I wasn't half as excited about the snow that covered the mountain or the - 3 (Celsius) frost we got this morning.  So far my corn seems to be okay, but the beans are looking a bit sad.

At least the gales have stopped.

For now.