We have had some rain, enough to moisten the ground. My Dad used to say that a ruined first crop of hay usually meant a good second crop, and I think he would have said that this year. We had enough rain around the Fourth of July to ruin a lot of hay, and the Fourth was always a big day for haying.
Our second crop hay was generally better than first crop. First crop was usually orchard grass and timothy, good horse hay, but low in protein. If you wanted dairy cows to produce, you had to supplement first crop hay with lots of grain and other protein sources. Second crop hay came from short lush grasses and clover. Less volume than first crop, but much higher in the stuff that made cows produce milk. Many dairy farmers imported alfalfa hay from east of the mountains to get high protein hay. My Dad never did. He preferred putting more effort into good local second crop hay to spending money on alfalfa. In the end, he had a productive herd, and he never went bankrupt. There is not much else to say.
The garden is lush. I hope we can keep it weeded. I got about a third of the sweet corn hoed over the weekend, and it looks OK, but there is two thirds to go and we are taking a long weekend out of town coming up…
Could look better…