Spring is well and truly here and the early variety grapes, Tempranillo,
Semillon and Pinot Noir have sprung into life.
Thankfully there must be some
substantial sub soil moisture as we have had virtually no rain for months.
It
has been the warmest driest winter on record.
It is already a record breaking
warm spring with temperatures in the high 30s in some places.
This is a real
concern as early spring is particularly windy. Combined with the high
temperatures and the dry this is perfect bush fire weather.
There are 90
fires burning in the state already. The few that are around us are thankfully
under control.
We are under a total fire ban here but keep an eye on the
Fires Around Us app just in case.
Lightning strikes, carelessness and, sadly,
arson can change the situation at any time.
We have been transferring water from our spare tanks to our home tank
and are thinking about putting ourselves on restriction now as there is no rain
forecast longer term.
There is a long waiting list to get a water delivery
and, in any case, we don't particularly want to use chlorinated town
water.
Despite the warm winter we had an inordinate number of frosts which
have killed off the pasture much earlier than normal. There has been no spring
regrowth due to the lack of rain so we are still feeding the cattle. Hay prices
have gone through the roof due to the dry.
All in all not a good situation.
Sunday, September 24, 2017
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