Everything depends on the weather

Our apple trees arrived April 15. The directions said to plant them immediately, even if the ground was frozen. The ground wasn't frozen, but it snowed as we dug holes along the edge of the hayfield and patted the cold dirt over the roots of the trees. Dave had planned to seed the orchard with grass before we planted. Then we would lay out the drip irrigation lines and mulch the trees with skirtings, the dirty wool skirted from our fleeces.

One month later, we still haven't planted grass in the orchard or oats in the rest of our fields. It has rained relentlessly, the wind has blown steadily, and most days the thermometer barely rises above 45 degrees. We haven't planted, we haven't even dug the fields. When they dry just a little more, hopefully tomorrow, Dave will hook the disk to the tractor and begin our field work.

If the weather warms up and the rains keep coming, we'll cut oats for hay about 55 days after he seeds. Then we hope for a few sunny and dry days so the hay will dry and we can begin baling. Summer is here, but the schedule of summer - when we cut, when we bale, when we spray, when we reseed - all depends on the weather.