Emergency Surgery

Driving out yesterday morning we were shocked to see one of our two pecan trees not just bent over, but broken midway at the trunk.  What could have caused such destruction?  The winds have been low and no grandchildren have been around lately...  I noticed that the six pecans were gone and determined that either a squirrel or large bird of some kind had sat on its upper most branch and caused the break.  So we taped the trunk backed together and reinforced it like a broken arm or leg. Looking at the top of the tree this morning, it appears that the leaves at the top have not shriveled; a sign we may have saved it.

 As this is one of two pecan trees that form the basis of our future pecan grove, we are hopeful it will make a full recovery.  This tough little tree produced at least six-seven pecans this year!  We don't want to start over.  On the other hand, those pecans may have contributed to its current condition!

Hurricane Harvey

How did Harvey impact us?  Well, we ended up with over eight inches of rain.  Normally we get a big rainfall like that within a 2-3 hour period.  Thankfully the rains were moderate to light over a 48 hour period.  The result was all the water was mostly absorbed.  What didn't get sucked up by the thirsty soil, drained into our three tanks.

When I took these pictures (24 hours after the rain stopped here), there was still some run-off occurring.

We dodged the 52+/- inch rains Houston got.  The impact from Harvey in this part of Central Texas was some much needed beneficial rain.  Rain in August is always good!