snow

[SASKFARMER3]

I travel to Hilo hawaii every year and that is weird rain area. One of the wettest in the world. The last 8 years were getting way more rain than ever. It's not ditching like some say are causing issues. This last summer witnessed for my self water running north to big quill lake cutting through fields itself. Dah is that normal or God ditching.
A drought ends with one good rain and another a few weeks later. Mud is mud.

[Braveheart]

Freewheat, if you've been doing HM for a while your land should be covered and erosion should be reduced. Also, if it's too wet for grass, plant succession would find the plants to grow in your conditions.

I know your conditions. We've had them. When it was so wet that neighbours had two quad tracks hooked tandem to pull one drill, our cows were harvesting stockpiled grass. HM and a grazing plan made a difference for us.

[jake550]

Did someone mention you're from the UK grass? Perhaps that explains it all. Not the same experience the rest of us that have been here for 5 generations would have. You can take all the courses in the world and read all the text books you like. Sometimes good old fashion experience still outweigh what some bloody expert can teach at some course.

[grassfarmer]

SF3, those would be the 30-40"' rainfall years that there is no official record of? Show us the proof! should be easy enough if it happened.

Freewheat I don't live in an area that is starving for moisture, I live in what is historically one of the highest and most dependable precip. areas of AB. Around 23" on average.

Bravehearts comments were true, managing holistically through such a wet cycle grasses like reeds canary should have been taking over. Nature always has an answer because it abhors a vacuum and will not allow species to die out.

You mentioned ruts before freewheat which reminds me of an experience a friend had here. Was trying to make grass silage the first June after he bought a new place and was making ruts everywhere. He took a second cut off in the fall driving between the ruts from the first cut that still had water lying in them. After four or five years of managing his grazing/cutting and water cycle he never ruts that land. If he gets a 2" rain in one day now he can leave it for a day to dry out and can be silaging the next. That is what we have found on our place too - get the water cycle working properly and its amazing how much moisture you can handle.

[Klause]

You are right... eventually plants will grow that adapt.


How exactly is foxtail good? Because here that is all that will grow in water logged alkali soils.


When native pastures have water runs 7 feet deep what ya going to do to holistically manage those?


Grass you continually said we didn't get 2 or 3x the normal rainfall... till I showed you ag canada maps... you don't have a clue till you go into sf3's area.



2 inches of rain and be out there the next day? Wouldn't that be lovely. Try 6 inches and not able to do anything for 3 weeks because every day is another half inch.

[Klause]

Btw Reed canary grass doesn't grow well in sask.


I know because we grew and harvested it for seed in MB... Planted 10 acres for the horses in a wet spot it never caught and turned to foxtail in a few months.

[freewheat]

Braveheart, my soil is never ever exposed. Except in the areas where torrents of water have made their own, not before seen, creeks in slight runs in fields. When the water won't stop running for years at a time, there is no chance to regain and fill in, and seed down those runs, that become 4 feet deep, and 8 feet wide, in previously very productive, barely there runs.

Nothing will grow where water never stops running.

Part of my plan, is that when it is wet, you simply do not try. Pulling a drill with two quad tracks, is just stupidity.

When it is that wet for 8 out of 10 years, it is not comprehensible by those who maybe saw this one or even two years.

Outside this area, it is not easy to comprehend. Not many areas never seeded crops for 4 years out of 10. I mean no crops, not half, not 2/3 of normal acres, I mean ZERO acres...

[freewheat]

Grass, NOTHING grows in water that is running hard for four and five years straight, over land which you would never even assume there was a water run...

[freewheat]

We have some excellent reed canary in areas. BUT it will not grow in running water! lol.

I repeat, it is not even fathomable to guys who think they have been wet once. When it rains 2 tenths, and water pours off the fields after each and every rain event, you might have a clue...

Yes, our soil can soak up a pile of rain, but not 40 plus inches of nonstop rain...

[freewheat]

I would never ever try to even say I understand drought because it was dry here once. That one time in 2002 when I actually hoped it would rain, because I thought we were dry, does not even come close to me having a clue what a drought is.