Slowing Down to Speed Up
Post by Clemson Prairie Ecology Fellow Matt Nelson
As we near the last few weeks of our two and half month long journey in Montana we have finally begun to wrap up the final bits and pieces of our projects. The plots we selected for thinning and vegetative sampling are almost clear and the weighing of the vegetation is almost completed. Mapping is something that can never be truly finished, but we have enough data to set the foundation for the project in years to come. This past week has seen the work slow down tremendously as we focused on vegetative sorting and weighing. With 150 bags of grass, forbs, and shrubs it was quite an undertaking and was often boring and tedious. Thankfully, we are now down to only 40 bags left.
We have finally begun to realize the truth about the lack of rain here in Montana. After having it rain on us for the entire first couple of weeks upon our arrival we never expected it to end. Terry had told us that the rain would end in mid to late June. We all tended to immediately believe Terry when he told us anything, but our experience to that point had made us very skeptical. Yet, true to Terry’s word, the rain did end and Montana became extremely dry. All of the grass quickly faded from green to brown, an issue that didn’t bother us much because it meant an end to the weekly lawn care. However, without the rain the alfalfa fields would not grow and Terry was forced to bale hay extremely early and not get anywhere near the amount he was hoping for. This meant that he would have to buy a lot of hay in order to get the cows through the long and brutal winter. The lack of rain and relentless heat also mean that our two ponds behind the house were beginning to dry up. The spring-fed ponds were quickly decreasing in water level due to the spring not being able to keep up with the amount of evaporation taking place. The smaller pond is not quite more than a puddle at this point and the larger one was heading that way. Thankfully, the dam that had been destroyed on the larger pond due to flooding was fixed this past week and the water level has increased dramatically. This is not only a good thing for us (it gives us something nice to look at), but also provides a source of water for much of the surrounding wildlife.
Due to the fact that we have spent so much time sorting, this week has been relatively uneventful compared to the rest of our stay here in Montana. Our time here is slowly ticking down and these next few weeks will only make them go by faster. This coming weekend we have our much-anticipated Yellowstone trip that is sure to be exciting as we stay in one of the most visited national parks in the United States. Next week will be spent in preparation for the arrival of the CAFLS’ deans and other special guests connected to Clemson University. So, while it seems that our time here is ending there is still much to do and experience.
As we near the last few weeks of our two and half month long journey in Montana we have finally begun to wrap up the final bits and pieces of our projects. The plots we selected for thinning and vegetative sampling are almost clear and the weighing of the vegetation is almost completed. Mapping is something that can never be truly finished, but we have enough data to set the foundation for the project in years to come. This past week has seen the work slow down tremendously as we focused on vegetative sorting and weighing. With 150 bags of grass, forbs, and shrubs it was quite an undertaking and was often boring and tedious. Thankfully, we are now down to only 40 bags left.
Due to the fact that we have spent so much time sorting, this week has been relatively uneventful compared to the rest of our stay here in Montana. Our time here is slowly ticking down and these next few weeks will only make them go by faster. This coming weekend we have our much-anticipated Yellowstone trip that is sure to be exciting as we stay in one of the most visited national parks in the United States. Next week will be spent in preparation for the arrival of the CAFLS’ deans and other special guests connected to Clemson University. So, while it seems that our time here is ending there is still much to do and experience.
