We've been getting some precipitation lately, which has been good news given our drought situation here in Alberta. It hadn't begun raining yet on Friday as had been forecast, and when it was still dry Saturday morning I was a bit apprehensive that the rain wouldn't come. But mid-morning it did, and by mid-afternoon it was snowing! It snowed well into the evening, to the point where I went out twice to shake some of our trees to get the snow off of them. I was worried most about our chokecherry and willow trees, which we planted shortly after we moved here to our acreage in 2003. These trees have done really well, probably tripling in height, and I really didn't want them to get damaged. It would have been no big deal if the snow came a few weeks ago before the trees all leafed out, but now they're full of leaves and blossoms, and so the heavy, wet snow builds up on them quickly.
It was a bit of a strange experience, going out at 9 pm (when it's still light out at this time of year), and shaking the leafy snow-laden tree branches, getting soaking wet, all the while smelling the gorgeous scent of the cherry blossoms - a weird combination of sensations! Gratifying though, to see the boughs spring back up into their more normal position once their burden was lifted.
And this morning the snow is mostly gone, melting away and soaking into the ground. Things sure do look green. And as a bonus, when I went to check out my garden this morning, the kale seems to have sprouted up overnight!
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Nice to get some moisture in the ground. Hope you didn't have your tomatoes in yet, though. We're hoping for rain here too. It's been unbelievably hot and dry; so dry that some of the grass is already brown like it's July.
Hi Liz - I learned from last year's June 1 frost to hold off on the tomatoes. Next weekend, maybe!
I sure hope you get some rain soon - it was definitely a relief to get precipitation in any form - people were complaining much less than usual about snow at this time of year...
You gotta love that kale! We've been having late rains here, northern CA, which I love but it's making havoc with the fruit harvests.
Yup, love the kale I do!
Are you guys still in a drought situation as well, or have things normalized a bit?
In such drought, snow is actually better to get than rain. More of the water is available to soak into the soil and less runs off.
Just so long as its without frost!
I'm sure glad you got the moisture you needed. We got another shower the other day that softened things up nicely after they had baked from the hard rain over a few days.
Ya, the snow is more of a 'time-release', which is great! It does seem like the moisture is soaking in, rather than just running off. We expect some more rain later this week, with a few days of sun inbetween, which should be just right :) I'm glad you're getting some moisture too - it is a welcome sight all over the province, definitely.
I suppose it shouldn't surprise me that it snowed this late in the year in Edmonton, but after our 90 degree days it somehow does! ;) Glad you were able to protect your beautiful trees---sure sounds like the kale appreciated the additional moisture! :)
Hi SA - wow, 90 degrees - that is too hot for Canadian me! I too am glad the trees made it. The one in the picture was a housewarming present from Gord's parents, and the birch tree was a housewarming present from the first neighbors we met here. But mostly I'm glad because the world needs as many living trees as it can get!
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