Drought in S/W Illinois

MrBooker 6/27/2023, 6:04 am

I'm in zone 6b and we haven't and a substantial rain in about 6 weeks with temps in the mid to upper 90's with blistering sunshine. I have about 20 half barrels and four 4x8 raised beds and I can't afford to keep watering two to three times a week.

If we don't get some rain right away, I'll have to choose a few of my strongest Peppers and tomatoes and water them only and sacrifice the rest.

This spring, I planted about 175 Texas sweet Onions. The tops fell over and dried up way too early and I harvested medium to small bulbs. Same thing with my Potatoes. Plants are drying up and falling over way too early and I"ll lose most of the harvest.

It's been many years since I've seen it this dry.

OhioGardener 6/27/2023, 10:27 am

Sorry to hear that, Mr. B! We had a drought from the 6th of May until the 2nd week of June, and it made life difficult for getting the gardens started. But, once the rain started we've been getting showers every day or two.

**Scorpio Rising** 6/27/2023, 11:58 pm

Mr Booker, the whole weather-thing is beyond my science and links. We all know what’s happening….too bad lawmakers don’t

**sanderson** 6/28/2023, 3:08 am

In Central California, we haven't had any rain for 3 months. We will not get rain for another 3-6 months. This is following a blessed Dec 26-March 30 rainy season with 17" of rain that filled our reservoirs and blanketed the mountains with snow. Our weather pattern has not changed for over 120 years. We get drought years (7" of winter rain) and exceptional years like this past winter. Farmers call it weather.

MrBooker 6/28/2023, 4:12 am

OhioGardener wrote:Sorry to hear that, Mr. B! We had a drought from the 6th of May until the 2nd week of June, and it made life difficult for getting the gardens started. But, once the rain started we've been getting showers every day or two.

We haven't had rain in about 6 weeks and "IF" we get any, it'll be too little, too late.
The weather man has rain in our forecast for the next 7 days. I'll believe it when I feel the rain drops on my head. 99 degrees tomorrow and 100 on Friday.

MrBooker 6/28/2023, 4:57 am

My Onion harvest. If they had grow to full size, I would have had a wheel barrow full.

Two burned Potato beds.

**sanderson** 6/28/2023, 11:40 am

Do you ever use a mulch? I guess where I am, there is no option but to use it with our water metering and political drought. My favorite ready-to-use is E-Z Straw with Tack. It really helps keep the Mix moist and cool. It's around $14 at Tractor Supply. We are supposed to get up to 109*F this weekend so the overhead shade cloths are going up today. Yesterday evening, the paracord supports went up.

MrBooker 6/28/2023, 5:28 pm

sanderson wrote:Do you ever use a mulch? I guess where I am, there is no option but to use it with our water metering and political drought. My favorite ready-to-use is E-Z Straw with Tack. It really helps keep the Mix moist and cool. It's around $14 at Tractor Supply. We are supposed to get up to 109*F this weekend so the overhead shade cloths are going up today. Yesterday evening, the paracord supports went up.

I have used EZ-Straw for many years, especially in my half barrelss but got lazy this year and paid the price.

**sanderson** 6/29/2023, 2:05 pm

Some years we are right on things, other years we are slow to get going and pay the price. Last fall I failed to sprinkle the direct-sowed beds with Sluggo Plus and lost a lot of baby seedlings right out of the gate to sow bugs. I had to re-sow, sprinkle, and for good measure I sprayed the surface of the MM with spinosad.

We just got the sun shade cloths up yesterday. It's been unusually mild so far, but it's melanoma season finally. Razz

MrBooker 6/29/2023, 2:44 pm

We just got the sun shade cloths up yesterday. It's been unusually mild so far, but it's melanoma season finally.

Melanoma season.... I'm plagued it. I had surgery a few years ago and they had to take off part of my ear. I'm scheduled for surgery again August 10th for two places on my face. I have red hair and fair skin and had severe sun burns when I was a kid.

Now, I wear a long sleeve shirt, cowboy hat and sunscreen.

**sanderson** 6/30/2023, 12:03 am

MrBooker wrote:. . .

Now, I wear a long sleeve shirt, cowboy hat and sunscreen.

I wear my husband's old dress shirts, garden/field worker hats, gloves with the fingers cut off and sunscreen.

MrBooker 6/30/2023, 5:52 am

sanderson wrote:
MrBooker wrote:. . .

Now, I wear a long sleeve shirt, cowboy hat and sunscreen.
I wear my husband's old dress shirts, garden/field worker hats, gloves with the fingers cut off and sunscreen.

"I wear my husband's old dress....... shirts... shirts.. say SHIRTS. lol!

**sanderson** 7/1/2023, 12:10 am

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