December | 2013 | drycrikjournal

I took the Kubota up the hill this morning to cut some Live Oak for the wood stove, taking some hay and my camera along. After the last dry year, there wasn’t enough dry feed to carry our cows until the new grass came, despite heavy culling since May. We’ve been looking at bare hillsides for at least a couple of months, and conditions had to be perfect to keep from feeding hay this December. Our first rain at the end of October wasn’t enough to start the grass, and even the rain nine days ago was barely sufficient to germinate the seed. As we head into colder weather, what germinated will come slowly if it survives. Essential in colder weather is the protection the dry feed provides.

One of the only places we have any dry feed is the Gathering Field in Greasy where the photo above was taken today. The photo below shows spotty germination in the clay along Dry Creek.

The Red Stem Fillaree below has begun to turn purple under stress on a gentle west slope along Dry Creek Road. The cover of dry feed would have provided shade and helped keep moisture in the ground a little longer. All in all, a spotty germination to date with below-freezing temperatures predicted for mid-week. Nothing short of a miracle, like plenty of warm rain, will alleviate the pressure on the cows, calves and us, as well as the ground.