Dog Days of Summer

The heat is here and while Gill dozes in the shade of his beloved chalet, sheep nibble green grasses and sip cool water hauled from our stream or pumped from the well. Fleeces are on the way out, having shed out through rubbing on fence line and stump. Lambs have grown so fast, now fully weened and fattening up for a good harvest this fall. The subtle flavors of black, salmon, salal, and oso berries with lush pasture grasses and scattered forbs has crafted taste like no other in a lamb bred for good weight gain on forage. EEC Forest Stewardship strives to build diversity in ecology through replanting of native species, and long term topsoil restoration with the help of our domestic animal inputs, which speed up our forest’s return with ample fertility. Summer offers a fine example of nutrient energy bursts into full fledged growth at the start of the warm months.

Fruit is on the vine- or branch in this case. Our apples are a mixed bag, with some strong looking contenders, yet the strange fall of last year. Record 90F heat in October did a number on deciduous orchard trees around the state, leaving dead leaves on the trees. It did not seem to disrupt initial blossoming, but pollination might have taken a hit. Single apples are forming, but it’s a noticeable drop in production for these older trees. Still, the select fruit should have plenty of energy from the tree to grow. Orchards demand a lot of water to bare high yields. At EEC Forest Stewardship, we’re focused on food forest development on a manageable, even neglect principle, though we’re still irrigating the young trees to help them establish. We do not water our mature trees, but a few are fed by gray water runoff.

Taking some time on The Green River, we enjoy the unusually warmer weather to get into some wild water that remains ice cold through the seasons. Even the dog had to jump out often for a warmup in the sun. We brought along a plastic aquarium to take a peek at underwater life in the river and witnessed a lot of Caddisfly larva- good indicators of the water’s clarity up stream. Valley enjoyed some good stick time in the current, but found a daunting challenge in trying to swim upstream. We also tried a bit of trout fishing, though nothing took a bite at the line, so with think they were full up on Caddisflies.

With the heat on and pups lazing in the shade, it feels more like late summer, though we’re still waiting for the solstice. Taking more frequent breaks from the hot afternoon temperatures means more time to catch up on blog posts and buckle down on belated spring cleaning inside. The 80F days are also sucking up what little moisture the soil has left, and there’s still many months of heat to come, with no rain in the forecast. This is shaping up to be another record shattering summer here at EEC. We’re mulching, irrigating, and planting as much as we can to beat back the heat. Thankfully, there’s a healthy well and bubbling creek at hand.