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Consulting with Mother Nature

When we were planning our project, using previous years’ experiences as a guide, we anticipated that the weeds would be actively growing by mid- to late-May of this year. Last year, when we were helping with the South Dakota Cooperative Extension and Bureau of Land Management project using sheep to target Dalmatian toadflax, we were nearly halfway into the research and already had tangible results by the end of May.

But, when we were preparing for this year’s project, we apparently forgot to consult with Mother Nature about the weather. Here we are at the end of May and the trees are just starting to leaf out. The grasses and other plants (including weeds) are starting to grow but not like a “normal” year.  In fact, on May 22nd, we were blessed to receive 7 inches of very heavy, wet snow. We’re not complaining—the higher elevations of the Black Hills received in excess of 20 inches. But over the last few weeks, we have yet to see much sunshine.  

​In western South Dakota, you don’t complain about the moisture. But we’re beginning to think it’s OK to frown a bit. For the past several days, we have been in a wet weather pattern and, as a result, we are having to rethink our grazing plans. The pasture where we had originally intended to start grazing the goats is so wet that we can hardly find places to put the shelters and pens that don’t have water running through them. Just look at the pictures below…that’s a difference of only a few hours! Thankfully, we have other options on the farm, so we’ll scout out another site, at least until things dry up a bit.

One positive from all of the constant rain is some unintended but necessary training for the weed-eating team. Admittedly, our goats are a bit wimpy when it comes to precipitation falling from the sky. Typically, at the first sign of rain, they head for shelter—at a run.

(I know. Some of you with range-hardy goats are saying, “Really???”)

​We have friends who have “tougher” goats, mainly because those critters are out on a vast pasture in the spring and summer and don’t have the luxury of a barn or shelter being within an easy running distance. We had actually wondered how our boys would behave being restricted to the test plots with less-than-ideal barn-like shelter conditions readily available. But, after days upon days of rain, they have apparently gotten weary of lounging in the barn and have succumbed to the calling of the green grass. This morning, with rain falling from the sky, the herd was out grazing! Training mission accomplished!

One other change resulting from the weather-related delay will be when we have our farm tour and seminar. Again, anticipating a routine year, we had thought that July would be a good time to show some research results. But with the cool, wet weather delaying plant growth, we thought that later in the summer might be a better time to showcase what we’ve been doing. After conferring with some of the groups that have expressed an interest in attending the tour, we have decided that Saturday, August 24, 2019, will be the date of our annual tour and farm event. We will have more information forthcoming on the day’s itinerary, but we can safely say that we will have the speakers and tours in the morning, beginning at 8:00 a.m., and will conclude around noon. We plan to welcome everyone to stay for a light lunch and, if anyone wishes to do so, spend some time mingling with other participants, get some questions answered, and share thoughts and ideas. So, mark your calendar—we would love to have you join us!

Hopefully, by the time our next blog and newsletter comes out the end of June, we will actually be able to show the research efforts well underway. Summer shouldn’t be far away, right?  Again, if you haven’t already signed up for our newsletter on our website or Facebook page, we invite you to do so by following this link.

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