10.24.07 SWEET RAIN

The fall drought has continued for weeks. Last night the dry dusty air was washed clean by several hard rains. Peering through the windshield of the car this morning I see how each tiny drop of water acts as a different lens for viewing the landscape and warps the light in wierdly wonderful ways.

08.05.07 RUN DRY

The August drought is grabbing hold. The mountain streams, like the Lynch River just down the road from me have disappeared. The moisture coming down from the mountains is now underground, running just below the surface of the stream bed. If you were to dig under these dry rocks you would find it. The shallower-rooted plants of the pastures and the forest understory dry up. Some die, some just become dormant waiting for fall's rains. We water the select plants in our garden hoping to keep these plants from more temperate climates going through the great dry.

07.30.07 WATER FEATURE

It's dry in the understory. Despite occasional afternoon thunderstorms, not much moisture makes it down through the dense eastern rain forest canopy to the ground. I set out an old sprinkler to water some transplants and it quickly becomes an oasis for small birds of all kinds who come to play, drink, and cool off in this joyful water feature.

06.27.07 QUENCH

We are only one week into summer, yet the dry time is here in a serious way. Occasional thunderstorms wet the surface of the garden and the cool mornings drop the dew, but otherwise soaking moisture is rare. In this area we depend on thick mulch to keep the surface of the garden cool and moist. The drought tolerant plants send their roots deep and use special strategies to reduce transpiration through their leaves. Living at the base of these huge mountains, our well is blessed with a huge natural reservoir which carries us through most any summer (knock, knock on wood!). So I spend a little of that mountain water on the tender herbs this morning.

3.4.2007 MOUNTAIN WATER

Winter cold has returned. The mountains roar with the sound of the March wind through the trees. We have had a night of heavy rains this week and the streams sing with the energy of water falling. But the spring sap is still, inhaling, as it waits ready to fill the forest with life.