May Rain Brings Summer Pain

Post date: May 23, 2015 10:46:18 PM

Somehow March and May got switched this year. While March was summery warm and dry, May has seen the sort of cold, showery, blustery weather that usually comes with the winter changing to spring in Bonny Doon. The problem, apart from the terrible beach weather, is that the grass just keeps growing.

If the grass within your defensible space has grown to a height where your dog disappears, please use extra care cutting it. Along with the hazard of sparks from metal tools hitting rocks that I discussed in August 2014, consider this. Tall grass produces a still insulating layer of air while still letting significant sunlight through to the ground. The temperature there can be 20 to 30 degrees hotter than we experience walking around. The grass that did stop growing at the usual time of year is lying on the ground now, hidden by the tall, still-green grass and producing a receptive fuel bed for a random spark. Dispense with the tall grass in the early morning with a string trimmer.