Heard today the first cicada, quite faint, as if its first attempt. Frogs every morning. Where are they? Not far. They are the voice of summer. – Harlan Hubbard

In the Sky

At 1:06 a.m. (EDT) on July 5th, the Earth reaches aphelion, the point at which it is farthest from the Sun. Aphelion occurs almost exactly six months from perihelion, Earth’s position closest to the Sun.

Venus in Aries remains the bright Morning Star. Mars in Pisces rises in the morning dark just before Venus. Jupiter in Aries shines with Venus as the second-brightest Morning Star. Saturn in Aquarius rises in the middle of the night, is the earliest of the Morning Stars.

The sky of aphelion reflects this parallel universe of circular time. At noon, the stars over the United States are the stars of perihelion midnight: Orion due south, the Pleiades overhead. On the clearest July afternoons, January’s Sirius is visible in the southeast. The Big Dipper lies in the northeast, Cepheus in the northwest. Leo is rising. Pegasus is setting. On the other hand, this week’s night sky is the day sky of Middle Winter. The teapot-like star formation of Libra lies in the south, followed by Scorpius and its red center, Antares. Sagittarius, the Archer, follows the Scorpion in the southeast. Above the Archer, the Milky Way sweeps up toward Cassiopeia in the north.

Phases of the Sycamore Bark Falling Moon

July 5: The moon is new.

July 13: The moon enters its second quarter

July 21: The moon is full.

July 27: The moon enters its final quarter.

Peak Activity Times for Creatures

When the moon is above the continental United States, creatures are typically most active. The second-most-active time occurs when the moon is below the Earth. Activity is likely to increase at new moon and full moon and at perigee (when the Moon is closest to Earth), especially as the barometer falls in advance of cold fronts near those dates.

Meteorology 

The cool fronts of Middle Summer normally cross the Mississippi River around July 6, 14, 21and 28. Tornadoes, hurricanes, floods or prolonged periods of soggy pasture are most likely to occur within the weather windows of July 3 through 7, July 17 through 23.

New moon on July 5 is likely to bring stormy weather and intensify the Corn Tassel Rains. Full moon on the 21st and lunar perigee on the 24th are likely to carry rain and cooler nights.

Weather Trends

The cool fronts of Deep Summer normally cross the Mississippi River around July 6, 14, 21 and 28. Tornadoes, hurricanes, floods or prolonged periods of soggy pasture are most likely to occur within the weather windows of July 3 through 7, July 18 through 23. New Moon on July 5, and Full Moon on July 21 (with lunar perigee on the 24th) should increase the chance of tornadoes in the South and Midwest and the landing of a hurricane in the Gulf region near those dates. 

The Allergy Index

Estimated Pollen Count

(On a scale of 0 - 700 grains per cubic meter)

Most of the pollen in the air this month continues to come from grasses.

July 10: 15

July 15: 17

July 20: 20

July 25: 25

July 30: 35

Estimated Mold Count

(On a scale of 0 - 7,000 grains per cubic meter)

July 10: 3,400

July 15: 3,900

July 20: 5,200

July 25: 5,400

July 30: 4,000

In the Field and Garden

By this time of the summer, first cut alfalfa is often almost complete, and the second cut has started. Oats are heading up, and the summer apple harvest gets underway as the earliest sweet corn comes to farmers markets. Potato leafhoppers reach economic levels in some alfalfa.

Select varieties of vegetables for midsummer planting which are able to grow well even as the days shorten. For frost-sensitive vegetables like beans, try to use varieties that ripen quickly. Fall onions as well as late plantings of sweet corn and squash can be sown, too. Greenhouse tomatoes seeded today should be producing by October.

Consider marketing lambs and kids for Independence Day cookouts this week, especially if your county fair is over.

High heat and humidity may make it hard for animals and humans to sleep; keep your livestock’s (and your family’s) bedding fresh and clean.

ALMANACK LITERATURE

A Gentle Farmer

By Lou Beard, Shelby, Ohio

I was raised outside of a small, quaint town in Ohio by the name of Sycamore. It was a peaceful town where the Sycamore trees grew wild by the small creeks. My father was a loud-spoken, large-frame strong farmer, but a gentle one. He did not appear that way, nor did I think of him in the way when I was young. But now, I, as an adult older than he was when he died, realize how gentle and compassionate he was.

When the sows on the farm were ready to have their babies, he would sleep in the barn with them. He put them in individual pens by themselves, and he would sleep outside on a cot, waiting for the right time. The “cot” was a bed made from bags of hog feed stacked up and a bale of straw. When the time came, he was right there to help deliver the little ones. As they appeared, he would clean them, wrap them in a clean, dry feed sack and lay them aside until all the babies were born. Sometimes 12 or so, if one appeared weak, it would be taken to the house for extra care. He knew that if it were left behind in its weakened condition, it would not survive. After he analyzed all the little ones, he would put them back in the care of their mother. Of course, checking on them often. I can remember two sows delivering at the same time, and Dad jumping over the divider between the sows to help both mothers deliver their babies. Most of the mother sows would deliver within a few weeks of each other, so he stayed out in the barn for weeks until it was all over.

He knew that every animal was important to his livelihood and to the welfare of the family. He did the same thing with the cows and sheep. By the time the birthing season was over in the spring, we had a bunch of healthy animals in the barn and a few – sometimes more than a few – frisky rambunctious healthy pets in the basement room we called the furnace room because it was so warm. My sister and I raised the weak babies on bottles. Se warmed the milk and fed them in the middle of the night and in the mornings before school.

I can’t remember ever losing a little pig or lamb. Every year it was the same thing. We got so accustomed to having little ones in the basement that it seemed strange to have an empty furnace room. I can remember crying when Dad would say, “It’s time for them there babies to go out and face the real world.” That was the day Mother was more than happy, but for us, it was a sad day.

ANSWERS TO LAST WEEK’S SCKRAMBLER

ERVECL CLEVER

VEER EVER 

REELV LEVER 

VEREN NEVER 

EEAORVDN ENDEAVOR

EEORVWH HOWEVER

WHNVREEE WHENEVER

EEARVTWH WHATEVER

EREVIHHCW WHICHEVER

REVES SEVER

THIS WEEK’S RHYMING SCKRAMBLER

ECA

EPACS

EFAFEC

ESAHC

EAERS

UAECLN

EAVS     ETKRAMELACP

AREBC

AMEC

In order to estimate your SCKRAMBLER IQ, award yourself 15 points for each word unscrambled, adding a 50-point bonus for getting all of them correct. If you find a typo, add another 15 points to your IQ. Yes, you are a genius.

Copyright 2024 – W. L. Felker