Spring Rains

The spring rains continued to hit us for the last couple of days and we received 2 ½“ during a 12 hour period. We were even lucky enough to have some quarter sized hail and high winds! It does not appear as though we had in damage here at Oak Ridge. Our neighbors had golf ball sized hail and it did some heavy damage to the tree leaves and crops. Hopefully the storms will start to slow down a bit now that we are officially going to be summer! The hot and sticky days have been triggering these thunderstorms and the humidity has finally dropped so maybe we can take the weekend off anyway?

One plus from the rain and quick changes to water levels is that it should slow down the midge reproduction. These midges can only survive from two inches below the surface to one inch above the water. When we get rapid changes they either get left “High and dry” or drop so far down they suffocate. These should help stop in massive EHD outbreaks this year?

The mature bucks do not seem to mind the storms and I think they actually enjoy them as it gives them a break from the heat and bugs. The antlers are continuing to push upward and you can see nice typical frames on several of the bucks already. The tines are still not close to being finished yet but you can at least see the base frame. Trophy bucks will always take longer to grow out as it takes extra time to add the mass to the main beam. Once they have completed the foundation the tine length and stickers can finish that “Trophy Buck” look.

#trophybuck