St Swithin's, it did rain on the 15th July
We have only just passed the fortieth day of St Swithin's, it did rain on the 15th July and true to its legend or saying, it has rained more days than its been fine. The grass has grown continuously right through the summer and given us very little to groan about, other than the fact that there has not been many "two fine days together" periods that you can attempt to make hay or properly wilted silage/haylage.
St Swithin's day is 15th July, a day on which people watch the weather for tradition says that whatever the weather is like on St Swithin's day, it will continue for the next forty days.
I have about a half of my grass mowing area on low lying peat bog, mid July is very often the best time or the only time when I can get on and drive all over it with the tractors and implements. So far we cut a seven acre patch along side the brook being what I know is the driest.
It carried the Mower and stood the twice over turning and rowing up with only making muddy wheel marks, the baler , (round baler) came and with his wide tyres carried well but for one small area at one end of the field, the wrapper came along with its small wheels and that seemed to cut in more particularly when he attempted to carry one while wrapping another at the same time, and all this on the driest part of the meadows.
Carting the bales meant that the trailer had got to be set along drier edges of the field and the bales carried to it, the problem was then the foot on the drawbar had to have a short length of sleeper to stop it sinking in the peat.
We have had this even in dry seasons, where the foot sinks in, but when starting off with a loaded trailer, the tyre of the trailer sinks into a depression in the turf with the weight, Its like the old timber drug horse teams that were trained to give a heavy snatch to get a heavy load of timber moving (a timber drug horse was never safe to use for farm work as they were in the habit of doing snatch starts and would tip the person off the top of the load). So the tractor has got to do a snatch start in four wheel drive and in a low enough gear so as not to stall, if it stalled the trailer will drop back into its depression and start to break through the turf, once the turf breaks the wheel, usually only one wheel will drop in up to the trailer chassis, the only way is to unload and start again.
A Verse to St. Swithin
St Swithin's day it turned out wet, for forty days its rain,
Each day we watch the forecast, but alas it's all in vein,
Cloud and drizzle a little sun, each day it starts the same,
The next day it turns out fine, and gives you hope again.
Fifteenth July the decisive day, and forty more to come,
Whole phase of the moon and more before we get the sun,
Big depressions sweeping in, low cloud and mist it brings,
Broken cloud and sunny spells, muggy warm evenings.
The local show the village fete, a chance they have to take,
It just by luck rain holds off; bring folks through the gate,
Just one day a year it is, and just a few hours that day,
Six whole days since Sunday, when the vicar's was meant to pray.
Hay makings been put on hold, and the corn is getting ripe
The grass matured and gone to seed, but who are we to gripe,
We take what comes from day to day, work along as befit,
Its frustrating all the waiting about, enough to make ya spit.
Countryman
There is a weather-rhyme that is well known throughout the British Isles since Elizabethan times-
St Swithin's day if thou dost rain,
Forty days it will remain
St Swithin's day if it be fair,
For forty days ‘twil rain nae mair'