To Seed or Not To Seed

One of the biggest challenges to growing things anywhere is access to water. This part of the country is typically dry anyway, with an average yearly precipitation of about ten inches total.  That's really not very much moisture.  Before I was married to a farmer, I didn't think too much about rainfall and precipitation.  Three-hundred and twenty days of sunshine annually sounded pretty darn good. A girl could get in a lot of hiking, running, and other recreating outdoors with all those sunny days, after all! 

The West is a dry place, however, which is something I didn't really notice for about the first full year I lived West of the divide (probably because I was too busy hiking, running, and recreating outdoors to notice).   I can remember one of the first times I drove home from Wyoming to Iowa in the summertime.  My brother had come out for a visit and I rode back with him on the drive to Iowa.  As soon as we got back to the midwest, it hit me how green the countryside was.  It looked like a jungle to me after I had spent almost a full year in the dry high country around Jackson.  

Now, I after about a full year living on the farm (I am starting my fifth year living in the West), I have a much better understanding of how dry it can be.  Especially this year.  I realize Iowa had a record dry year, too.  And, for most of the year, our part of the state of Montana, seemed to be out of the drought zone.  I think it has nearly caught up to us at this point.  We have had no measurable moisture in quite some time. 

We live in the northwest corner of Hill County.  If you start in the northwest corner of Montana, Hill County is the sixth county from the western border of the state, right along the Canadian line. 

This graphic indicates that Hill County, where our farm is, is not under drought conditions yet.  That may be the case, but the biggest issue facing us at this time is how the recent lack of moisture is affecting seeding.  This time of year, farmers all around us are seeding winter wheat.  Last year, the majority of our crop was winter wheat.   This will probably not be the case this year.  It has just been difficult to get excited about seeding into dust and clumpy earth.  Every time a piece of farm machinery moves through a field and turns dirt, there is some moisture loss and additional drying of the ground. The seeding process in general is aided by some moisture in the ground just to hold the dirt on top of the seeds in place.  Along with that, the seed can't germinate without some moisture. With no rain in the long-range forecast, it seems like it could be a waste of time, money, and resources to attempt seeding. 

So I suppose we will wait until Spring, and seed more spring wheat, barley, and peas.  Here's hoping for a wet winter!