The greening.

[saxonaxe]

Helping a friend on a Sussex Downland farm these past few weeks has really illustrated to me how the land has recovered (at least visually) from the weeks of hot,dry weather we had here in the South.

I remember taking this photograph as I walked down the hill to the local town. Brown, dried up Downland showing in the distance above the roof tops.


The dark green in the foreground is irrigated Vineyards, but the Downland that looked like ploughed land was grazing land and completely dried out.


The local Reservoir in the distance was starting to show a pale "Beach" after a few weeks without any rain.


A couple of days ago I took these photographs coming off the Downs after a days work.




Still very warm, even in the wind, which gave a nice blown sky to work under..

 

[Robson Valley]

You might have been south here on highway 97, past William's Lake into the high Cariboo ranch coutry =
goes like that every summer! Looks just the same, maybe fewer hedges. Grasses are extremely drought resistant.
All the same, was there any fear of rangeland grass fires at your place?

 

[saxonaxe]

Yes, indeed there was, although to my knowledge there were only a couple in my immediate area, soon extinguished and only effecting a very small acreage, although a Farmer lost his Tractor which ironically is believed to have caused one of the fires when the engine overheated.
One day when I was walking out on the Downs I took this photograph when I stopped for a brew.

You will notice a blackened area between the wind shield and the Gas burner. I had flattened the surrounding grass as a precaution before putting a match to the stove, but just one stalk caught a flame and instantly that black area burned! I am always ultra cautious with all fires and I was watching like a Hawk, but the flare up was sudden and rapid.
Tea was still brewed and I soaked the area with water after I had stamped out the brief flames, but it was a good illustration of how quickly fire begins under such conditions.
It was a blistering hot day with virtually no wind.