Hot

I don’t have to tell you: it was a hot week. On Tuesday at our house, we hit a high of 112 degrees. Okay, I do have to tell you that the reading was taken in direct sun, above a concrete patio. Take it as you will. The goal for the week was to survive.

I got the hoses down to water the last four beds with a sprinkler.

The plants in the garden did very well in the heat. The only problem arose when one zone of the irrigation system went out on Tuesday. It happened to be for the vegetable beds farthest from the house, so I was hooking together hoses and dragging them down to water those beds with a sprinkler. It all worked out fine, but it sure made me appreciate the automated, underground drip irrigation system all the more. It was repaired by Friday afternoon.

I had a bit harder time in the heat. I worked outside in the morning, trying to keep in the shade even then. I tried even harder to stay inside in the afternoons: starting new lettuce seeds, potting up some starts, ordering more seeds and garlic, and working on the books. It wasn’t completely possible, though; there was extra watering to do and chickens to check on. I was moving slowly.

A Dominique panting to stay cool.

The girls did pretty well. They were hot, no doubt about it, panting and holding out their wings to cool off. I put out extra water and a sprinkler in their run. I gave them frozen watermelon rinds to eat. I think we’ll all be feeling a bit better in the next few days when (if?) the temperatures get back to normal.