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Farm & Ranch Happenings

published: March 5th 2010
by: Harvey Buehring

“Old Mesquites Agree With The Yankees’ Groundhog - More Winter Is In Store”
    Last winter South Texas was dry as a desert.  This winter it is as boggy as a swamp.  Last winter, parts of the Coastal Bend only received three tenths of an inch of rainfall during first three months of the year. This year eight to twelve inches of rainfall have occurred during that same three month period.   Unfortunately for Texas farmers and ranchers, below normal rainfall amounts last season continued through the spring and summer and put most of Texas in a drought of historic proportions. To say the least, these past twelve months have been a dramatic contrast in weather extremes.
    As February, 2010 came to a close the National Weather Service provided official  confirmation to the fact that all parts of Texas were now drought free.   The return of ample soil moisture is great news for the folks that make their living from agricultural production.   But as we all know, weather extremes of any type can bring hardships as well as a new set of challenges for farmers and ranchers.
    While working the San Antonio Livestock Show, I had a chance to visit with a number of breeding cattle exhibitors from across the state.   Most were all smiles about the  wonderful turn-around that pastures and rangeland made this past autumn and all were looking forward to a very productive spring.    Most folks were not complaining about the abundance of precipitation this winter.  But those from Northeast Texas in particular relayed stories about the challenges of feeding large round bales when the ground was so saturated that their tractors were getting stuck before they could get the hay out of the storage lot.   One gentleman indicated he was praying for a few dry days with hard freezing weather each week to firm up the ground so he could put out enough hay to last the week.  
    Many parts of Texas are wet to the point of field capacity.  The term “field capacity” is one that agronomist and soil scientists use to indicate the point at which total saturation of all air space in the soil has occurred.  At that point no additional water can be absorbed by the soil and water begins to stand.   That condition is common in field sites in cropland areas across the Coastal Bend area and many other locations in the South Texas region.  Just a few tenths of precipitation will now result is standing water.
    Most years, when the final day of February arrives in South Texas, you can see tractors pulling planters that are busy seeding crops in fields around every corner.   If you take a closer look at fields that have been planted around this time of year you are likely to find corn or grain sorghum plants emerging to a solid stand.
    None of that has been evident in 2009 or 2010, but for two totally different reasons.  Last February planters weren’t running because the soil was powder-dry throughout the root zone.  Farm equipment had been idle for months waiting on a rain to provide planting moisture.  This year farm equipment has been idle for months because fields have been to wet too allow land preparations and fertilizer applications.   Ether extreme is cause for worry.   Is one a better situation than the other?  From  this perspective probably so.   The old-timers who farmed  the dry-land area of South Texas have a saying that sums up the better of the two situations.  They say, “ You always produce more when you plant seeds in the mud than when they are planted in the dust”.   If that is the case, this should be a very productive crop year.
    Cold fronts capable of bringing freezing weather into South Texas typically diminish  around the 20th of February in the Lower Coastal Bend.   That may not be the case this year.     Up in Yankee Land, most of the groundhogs were in agreement that six more weeks of winter was in store for their part of the world.   Here in South Texas, our best indicator that the final frost has occurred are the old ruff-barked mesquite trees.  They are seldom fooled into leafing out when a hard freeze is still a possibility.    A survey of  mesquite trees on rangeland sites in the western portions of the Coastal Bend on February 24 showed no evidence of any of them trying to break out with new bud growth.   In fact the juvenile mesquites that are often fooled haven’t pushed out any new leaf growth either.  So keep the jackets handy a couple of more weeks and don’t forget to inspect the mesquites on a weekly basis.
    In fact, another bit of “weather folklore” may come into play this winter.  And this is something that may  present the silver lining in the dark cloud that has been hanging over the saturated fields delaying planting of crops this spring.  You see, there is an old German farmers saying that goes something like this, “If you hear thunder during January, expect a freeze in late March or early April”.
    Since our part of the country experienced thunder during January, it may be a blessing in disguise that any significant planting of warm-season crops will likely not occur before mid to latter March, based on the current soil moisture situation.   An April freeze is generally devastating to farmers in South Texas particularly in years when crops are planted early and have emerged during early March, but this year late planted crops could escape freeze damage if that occurred, providing the growing point of the plant is still underground and insulated from the freezing temperatures.
    Of course farmers aren’t the only agricultural producers that are devastated when a late freeze occurs.  Ranchers who have their warm season grasses burned back from a hard freeze at a time when no other grazing is available will see adverse effects on their livestock, as well.    Let’s keep our fingers crossed that no late freezes occur to spoil what has the potential to be a very productive spring for Texas farmers and ranchers.