Super dry here too in northern lower Michigan. I'm trying to keep veggies and flowers going without using a ton of water. We had, I believe, one actual rainfall in July of a little under an inch. Local crops are not looking great, but still OK I think.

I have placed large 8 cup mixing bowls with handles under my kitchen and bath faucets. I catch the water that is *clean*, from hand washing, rinsing, etc. than take them out my back door and water any pots that need it. So much easier than dragging the hoses! I also take the water to plants in the borders that are in particular need. I have saved hundreds of gallons from going down the drain! At first, I thought it would be annoying but it hasn't been! Need to put a bucket in the shower next! Also, I'm looking into drought tolerant plants more and more.

We are terribly dry. The ground is even showing cracks in places. I have avoided watering this year, but it has just gotten too bad. The river birches are already yellowing and dropping their leaves and the azaleas are looking bad, too. Some hostas look fine. I lost my fothergilla because I didn't check that side of the house recently. Being native, it didn't occur to me that I needed to keep an eye on it. The other natives seem to be okay. The weeds are going gngbusters! Ha. I have the sprinkler going out front today for the three Hydrangea paniculata which I also had to water at the end of last week. The oakleaf hydrangea out back needed a lot of water yesterday.

They say we may get rain today. I am keeping my fingers crossed, but I think our house is actually located in the previously unknown Northern Virginia Desert. ;( They should have disclosed that when we bought the place 18 years ago (just kidding). It is the same every year! Ugh.

Oh, and I use the water from out dehumidifier, too these days.

I will wish for rain for all of us!

We've had more rain than most in our area (maybe because we're by the creek?) but it's getting dry here, too. We always have dry summers, but with all the fires it's been particularly bad.

Not much snow last winter, but this winter we'll probably have much more! Lots of berries on trees and shrubs. That's usually a pretty good indicator...the birds have to eat. :)

Ground is cracking here too.

I held off as long as I could too before I started to haul water, but there were things I had planted this Spring and thought they could use a boost. Every time this year I keep thinking I want to buy a plastic water tank (8gl.or 10gl) that has a sprayer and put it in my garden cart to drive around to the garden. I hate hoses, so I carry two 2gl watering cans, one in each hand, back and forth from the basement tap or even the kitchen sink (which is closer). That gets old fast. However, it's a great weight bearing exercise!

Today I went to Lowes for something else and came home with a blue Veronica and a pink Speedwell from the $1 clearance rack. The blossoms were all spent and looked ratty but there was plenty of new growth and even some new bloom coming on. I just trimmed all the dead off when I got them home. Now I wish we would get a good soaker before I plant them to give them more of a chance.

Ugh. Still no rain.

Ha, schoolhouse! Great minds...I also stopped by the nursery on my home from a haircut yesterday. Bought two echinacea (white which I don't have any of-forget which and too lazy right now to go check) and a Scabiosa 'Butterfly Blue' as well as one little geranium (Pelargonium) because it was small, but just perfect and the color was such a pretty bright pink. I will overwinter it in the house this year. I am hopeless.

I'm ready for winter, the heat is getting to me, we are in drought conditions, no rain, no snow pack in the mountains, on water restrictions the likes I've never seen before in my lifetime. We can only water between 6 and 10 morning or night, twice a week. I'm even saving dish water to throw on things just outside the back door.

Summers are mostly in the low to mid 70's here but where the h*ll did all these 90 + days come from, we've only had a couple of light sprinklings of rain all summer.

This hasn't stopped me tho :) I've ordered a new hydrangea to be picked up at the end of the month, Phoenix Perennials has brought a few in, I had to pre-order it but is it ever a beauty "Miss Saori" the foliage emerges burgundy red in the spring, turns green as it matures and then turns back to burgundy red in summer and into fall, told they are in 3 gal pots so hopefully I'll see a bloom or two next year, I think I'll keep it in it's pot, in the shade house until it cools down, at least I can make sure it gets all the water it needs and it will definitely be cooler than out in the garden..

Miss Saori

Annette

Annette I didn't realize conditions were so bad in Canada. Sorry to hear that. The hydrangea is beautiful. Good luck with that and the others you will plant. You too, cyn, good luck with your new purchases. I haven't planted mine yet BUT this afternoon at 5:14pm. we got a down pour! and then another shortly after. However, it was just a sip for the ground. What we need is an all night soaker.

Believe it or not I mowed a couple hours before, but only because the crabgrass and some other weed were growing tall seed stalks. But I mowed on a higher deck setting just to clip them off. The lawn around the courtyard garden looks awful - brown and big patches of crabgrass like I've never seen.

we got a light sprinkle early morning that barely wet the walk. We do have an inch predicted for this afternoon or evening..or maybe overnight. I am not holding my breath. Next time I visit our animal welfare league, I will ask if they have any camels up for adoption.

0.4 inches last night. Sigh. Sprinkler going every day now.

We are still in drought conditions although it has cooled off some :). We have been on stage two watering restriction for quite a while now and have been asked not to water our lawns, at present this is on a voluntary basis (we never do in the summer). Everybody complying, water use is down 15-20%. Because of this the city is bemoaning the fact that they are losing revenue, already estimated $670,000 from the water user rates alone. So I expect our user rates will go up, you can't win for bl**dy losing. They are high enough already, what they'll find is people will use even less, stop gardening for one, which in turn will put a lot of garden centers out of business, many are already finding it hard making ends meet as it is. There's my bit of gloom and doom for the day :(.

On the bright side the powers that be say we might be in for a bit of rain in September.

Annette

Chilly here today with lots and lots of dark puffy clouds - but so far zero precipitation. Cooler temps mean deeper color in the blooms though.

The "Palace Purple" coral bells I planted last Spring (of 2014) are suffering. The plants have grown big but leaf edges are crispy and today I noticed one plant's roots were nearly out of the ground, the soil was so dry. However, I can't rule out a mole perhaps digging under or around it. grrr.

Rained here this morning for about 20 minutes. Actually, it poured! We even had a few puddles :)

Now if they can put out the fires....we can finally get rid of all this smoke and go outside, again.

I sure hope those awful fires can be doused by rain soon... and give the firefighters a little help!

It's been awful and those firefighters are right in the middle of them! Brave people and we all appreciate their efforts. We've had firefighters from Australia and New Zealand and water planes from Canada.

So many people helping....but so many fires!

Smoke started to ease up, so we made a mad dash to town! LOL Now, there's no smoke at our place (YEA!) but probably will be back tomorrow. Hope the rain that's supposed to get here makes it....and puts out some of these fires :)

We have had an inch or more of rainfall almost every week. No need to water anything except newly planted or transplanted plants. Most plants love this much rain but a few do not and are weak or died.

We actually had a thunderstorm very early this morning before dawn, there is a nice big puddle in the gravel driveway.

We've got rain, that beautiful wet stuff falling from the sky, sometimes heavy, sometimes light, with a few dry breaks in between, this has been going on for several days now. This is the first significant rain since March, I'll never complain about the rain again, well at least not for awhile :). Never in all my years have seen a summer like the one we've just had, I'd never have thought I would so be looking to fall and winter. The unprecedented heat almost did me in. I just hope we have enough dry spells to put the garden to bed for the winter.

Annette

This is such an odd year. It's been hot and drier than usual in New England, but while I was in northern MN for week up on the Canadian border in mid-august, it rained almost constantly and was in the 50's and 60's all but one day. It made for tough canoeing, but my garden would have welcomed it if it had made it as far as New England.

I am glad to hear that the northwest has had enough rain to reduce the drought and the fires!