This is why we are content to celebrate a global festival of renewal and new life in the southern autumn, instead of in the spring. My heart feels buoyant. And this is why:
Fresh, lush, beautiful rain on the strawberry leaves. Fresh, lush, beautiful rain everywhere. Today, it rained. And rained, and rained, and rained. Our strawberry patch somehow survived the summer, and is springing into renewed growth with the cooler weather.
More after the cut…
These winsome carrot seedlings were planted last week.
And this doesn’t look like much yet, but planted today in this lovely wet dirt: more carrots, parsnips, onions, spring onions, chives, spinach, mignonette lettuce and a variety of climbing and bush beans. I’m just luxuriating in the magnificent sight and scent of rain-soaked dirt and sodden mulch. It’s been so long.
It’s been a dry, dry summer. The Bureau said, ten days ago:
“For the 12-month period from April 2006 to March 2007, there are serious to severe rainfall deficiencies over [...] WA west of a line from around Exmouth, inland around 150-250 km and south to Bremer Bay. Record low 12-month falls were recorded between Dalby and Goondiwindi in southern Queensland, along much of WA’s west coast and Tasmania’s north coast, and in small patches from Melbourne to Canberra.
The worst of the deficiencies are likely to remain for some time. For them to be removed by the end of June, for example, falls over the next three months would need to be in the highest 10% of the historical record in many areas. [...] The deficiencies discussed above have occurred against a backdrop of multi-year rainfall deficits that have severely stressed water supplies in the east and southwest of the country. “
Here’s our current drought map:
Fingers crossed it will keep on raining. The dirt will spring to life again, the dams will fill, and weather forecasters will smile again.
It’s rained here in Sydney this evening, as well. The last few months, since just before Xmas, there’s actually been enough rain around that I haven’t turned on my drip-watering system in the garden beds. I’ve just been keeping the plants in pots hand-watered.
That’s a really huge change from previous years. Fingers crossed that it continues.