by Brian Barolo
When will the rain go away? We were all children in our lives and we all chanted the ryhme ‘ Rian rain go away. Come back another day ‘ at some point. Most likely we were chanting this due to the fact of rain storms that don’t stop for days. Being young pent up with energy in the house when it doesn’t stop raining becomes a disaster for paremts. Children become very unsettled and start to whine and complain.The trick is usually to send the kids outdoors to burn off all of that built up energy. Otherwise to get children interested in doing indoor games and projects is a task in itself. Back in the days prior to video games, puzzles and board games was the fall back. Now times have changed with easy access to computers, smart phones, videos and digital games. Kids are very easy to distract, but do you want your children doing zero physical activity and just staring at a screen. When doing this the kids become less and less social. Is this the future, everyone for themselves and no real interaction with real people. Get the children involved in indoor activities no matter what their complaint. You must help them learn how to be interested in activities which are never usually performed. These are the back up activities when the regular ones are not accessible.
Being an adult, the rain has almost zero impact on us . Even working outdoors the rain will effect some jobs but not all. We wear rain gear to perform all of outdoor duties. It is never fun working outdoors, but when the job must get done we do it no matter what the weather is. If you are not willing to work in the rain you can easily be replaced. Someone will be willing to work whenever, where ever, in what ever conditions. Rain is only water and we will dry off eventually. People get wet all the time taking showers and then dry off. To get wet is natural. To work in the rain is not the best conditions, but in most cases tolerable. Getting wet is only a temporary condition and we always get past the disruption. It can get very uncomfortable if you get wet and cannot dry off for an extended period of time. Working outdoors for extremely long hours in wet conditions and getting wet without the absolute finest in waterproof gear can cause some physical problems like ailments as colds or phneumonia. The mental abuse can be stress and anxiety. Being waterlogged is horrible in itself till you become completely dry. The main thought and hope of most people when working outdoors is for clear skies the entire work day.
Gardens on the other hand absolutely love the rain pretty much all the time mixed in with great amounts of sunlight. Plants, vegetables and flowers are always growing if given enough water and daylight. However, every single species of vegetation has a different required mix of water and light. Therefore, not enough of the proper light or not enough water or too much water or too much direct sunlight can kill certain vegetation. The soil has a great deal with the reproduction of a plant in addition to moisture and light. The soils around the earth vary tremendously. Manufacturers sell assorted soils with contents and nutrients for specific uses with certain plant life. Soil is a variation of dirt that may be more solid or looser and airy when used for planting vegetables. The soil can take and absorb water to a point then the soil will start to wash away. When it rains the soil will begin absorbing the water and as it drains through the soil down to the roots the plant starts to drink and grow. This is how the world of vegetation works. When it rains for days on end the soil becomes extremely wet, soft and easily displaced. This can cause tall plants to topple over because the roots are not able to maintain a good footing in loose waterlogged soil. Tall pepper plants become top heavy after bearing fruit and are unable to keep a good footing after so much rain. Another tall plant, some grow in gardens like I do, is corn. Corn needs to be planted in a mound of dirt so that the roots can set a base because they do not grow deep. Too much rain again softens the mound of dirt and if the roots are not completely set then the plant will topple over. In my garden I will use 1 – 3 stakes if needed to help prop these plants up so they can keep growing. I will also add mor dry soil to the base of all those plants leaning over to keep them upright. In most cases when a plant collapses to the ground it will usually die. So “Rain Rain Go Away, Come Back Another Day”.