This temperature chart comes from Lawton Airport reporting station, about 30 miles north of my Tiny Farm. My daily temperatures have been averaging about 5 degrees warmer that those recorder at Lawton. My high yesterday was 116 degrees and the official at Lawton airport was a cool 110 degrees.
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Down on the farm, local wheat farmers mostly had a total failed crop harvest this year, but, being the optimist they are, they are attempting to plow the dry, hard soil in an attempt to ready their fields for drilling in their winter wheat seed. They know that the soil is to dry for wheat seed to germinate now, so they will dust in (dry plant) their seed and hope it comes a few good rains to germinate the seed and get a stand of wheat up before the real cold of winter arrives.
Without a few good heavy rains this fall and spring they (farmers) will have wasted many thousands of dollars in seed and fuel cost plowing and planting their fields. To keep things in prospective, a large tractor can easily burn $800.00 to $1,000.00 of fuel a day. Grinning, no one ever said that your can operate a large farm cheaply.
Hang on to your wallet! Beef prices are sure to rise soon. With no grazing grass pastures and considering the cost of buying and feeding hay, many farmers/ranchers are selling off all but their best breeding stock. Cows on feed are nearing an all time low number and this limited supply of cows will soon be reflected in the price you pay at your market meat counter. Americans are in direct competition with Asian markets who are seeking more pounds of beef to import to feed an ever increasing Asian population.
Why is common sense so uncommon?
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The recent headlines have prompted me to get ready to fill my freezer next month with beef and pork. I get my rabbit and poultry from my sister at discount prices or bartered items and my son fishes and will bag us a deer this fall if all goes well. Hope everyone fares well this winter.