From the Pastures: The law of averages

I asked my wife, “What have I done in the last 30 days?” She said, “Praying for rain, moving sheep and praying for rain.” I’m still praying for rain. Rick Adams up by Herscher helped put out a field fire on Oct. 6 that burned for 2.5 miles before being put out. Go to his Facebook page and scroll through the comments to see a live video of the actual fire in progress. I was there Oct. 8 and it still smelled like burned corn. Be careful, it is the season.

When I was a young man, in my early 20s, I asked an “old man” — he must have been at least 60 years old; I’m in my 70s now — what is average? He said, “Sonny, that’s when your head is in the oven and your feet are in the freezer so your belly is about average.” So we will “average out” our rainfall this year.

I just hope your ground is covered so it can absorb the rain that will be coming. Not like your “neighbors’” ground that might shed the water and the soil into the ditch or creek. It’s probably past the preparation stage now.

I’m marketing — not selling — my lambs this month, which will decrease my stock numbers that need my drought-ravaged forage. The grass that looked OK last month does not look as good today. I need to reduce my stocking rate, i.e. the number of head per acre.

There are several opportunities to learn from pasture walks or seminars coming up. Hopefully, we can prepare for next year.