Drought in Texas

[ouachita]

I've been down in Texas about 60 miles north east of downtown Houston (just north of the Dyer Mill fire) around Plantersville, Texas.  Lake Conroe Pool Level is 201 ft and this morning was down to 193.14....almost 8 ft down.......that doesn't sound bad until you hear that it has never dropped more than 6 ft (twice)  since the dam was completed in 1973.  

I have been marking dead timber from the drought for the past three days in 130 acres and the loggers are just getting started.  Marked several 30+ inch dbh trees that have died. Told the logger to clear cut about 10 acres.  I can almost tell by soil profile where the trees are dying/going to die.  As the soil transitions from a sandy loam to a blackland soil the trees start going south. I'm afraid that if we don't get any rain all the timber on the 130 acres will be lost.

Camp Robinwood, a girl scout camp as completely lost 50 acres of timber from the drought.  

The Houston area is down over 20 inches of rainfall for the year.  

The mill that does accept dead timber is doing so as chip n saw at $25/ton.  This week my logger sent 3 loads with 23-25 logs apiece to the mill.....the weights being in the neighboard of 24 tons.  


Charles Westmoreland CF, RF
Fordyce, Arkansas & Conroe, Texas

[WDH]

Is that chip-n-saw price delivered?

[Magicman]

The devastation stretches across much of Texas.  We saw dead trees and fire damage along I20 and Hwy 287 as far West as Vernon.  The lake North of Dallas was very low compared with previous years.

[Autocar]

Reading this gives me shivers up my back, No Water No Life pretty scary stuff  :-\ .

[Woodwalker]

Reading this gives me shivers up my back, No Water No Life pretty scary stuff  :-\ .

It's a slow process. Everything doesn't go at one time. 
I cut, bunched and cleaned up the tops on over a load of dead drought killed pine this weekend. Next on the list is the oak. Once I get the dead timber back away from the house and barn, I'll start in the pasture.

[tcsmpsi]

Reading this gives me shivers up my back, No Water No Life pretty scary stuff  :-\ .

Living in the middle of it, for most of a year, that becomes...inherent.  A fellow becomes careful, to even where he passes gas so as not to create 'the last straw'.   :D

Every 'day off' for the last several months, has been devoted to harvesting dead trees.  Brush, firewood, logs.  The last couple days off, I have cleaned up, moved and stacked the last of what I have downed.   So far, I have found no new dead trees, other than smaller trees (mostly hardwoods) that if I can get to for firewood sometime, fine.  If not, fine.

It has taken enough toll that the ecological dynamics of the Big Thicket will have quite a transition.  And we are still waaaaaay dry.

[ouachita]

Chip n Saw price is a gatewood price delivered to the CLW mill in Splendora, Texas, for dead pine timber with 6" tops.

Drove down to Houston this weekend.  EXXON bought 1200 acres for a new corporate office park.  The heavily wooded (Pine) area is now almost all dead pines.  Just north of that, the Woodlands, Texas has lost numerous pines in the greenbelt areas.

Charles Westmoreland CF, RF
Conroe, Texas and Fordyce, Arkansas

[WDH]

Michael,

Hopefully the little yaupons made it.

[tcsmpsi]

They have proven to be most hardy.   ;D  Then the little beeches (  ;D ), and then the little elms.

[ouachita]

The speaker at the Montgomery-Harris Co. Forest Landowners Assoc. last night was the meteorlogist with the Harris Co. Flood Control District.  One of the best powerpoint presentations I have ever witnessed.

Some comments:

The drought is worse than the 1918 drought and was worse by June than all of 1918.  The 1918 drought was worse than the 1950's drought.

The drought will probably last at least one more year.

Usually a drought will also coinside with higher average temperatures.

The drought is so deep it will take several years of normal rainfall to minimize the results of the drought.

The records that have been set by this drought will stand for a long, long, time.

Many droughts are broken with a flood.


Charles Westmoreland CF, RF
Conroe, Texas and Fordyce, Arkansas

[Den Socling]

Let's hope the records last a long, long time.

[thecfarm]

Have not been hearing much on the news lately. Still in a drought?

[Woodwalker]

Y

Have not been hearing much on the news lately. Still in a drought?

Yes.
News reporter says we're well over 20" behind in rain fall for just this year. Don't remember the deficit from last year. We got 9\16" last Tuesday. That makes a little over 3" this year.