Sunday, September 9, 2012

This Is What We Wait For



Isn't that a pretty picture? Can you see those pretty open cotton bolls?
There is still a long way to go, and plenty of time to screw up. White flies can infest the field and cover the open lint with honey dew. The mills don't like that. The weather can shift and start raining. I have seen some very wet Septembers. The cooler weather is nice, but it is hard on a cotton crop. But, for the moment things look nice.
   For the record, there are three open bolls in this picture. It takes a lot of bolls to make a bale of cotton. It takes over 125,000 bolls per acre to make one bale of cotton with Acala varieties. For Pima cotton, like you see in this picture it takes more.So, three look pretty, but I need a lot more bolls to open in the next six weeks to make a crops- millions more bolls, and that's just in my field.


Ill try to be a little less crabby than usual with this weeks radio post.


Covering Up
by Paul H. Betancourt
copyright September 2012

                When I first moved up here my father, with his fatherly advice, even though he’d never lived in a climate like this, said, “Make sure you wear a floppy hat and long sleeves.” I always have because we started working cattle so I wore cowboy hats and long sleeved western shirts.
            It’s easy to tell the difference between the people who work outside and those who play outside. People who work outside do cover up. People who play outside wear tank tops and shorts.
            Years ago my son asked, “Dad, why don’t you wear t-shirts to work. You would be much cooler. That week he actually came out to work for us.  After his first day out in the field he came home, BBQ’d,  and even before he took a shower he went upstairs took two of my new works shirts out of my closet. I never did get those shirts back.
            There’s nothing wrong with playing or enjoying the sunshine. You just have to remember sunshine in our area is strong. The same sun that turns grapes in to raisins can turn us in to raisins too. So, if you don’t want to turn into a raisin- cover up and keep hydrated.

Its still warm out there.


I hope Y'all have a great week.

P

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