I didn't quite understand how much rain we have had this summer until I looked up the stats. In June, the city shattered a 212 year record, with 269.1mm of rain (10.5 inches); it was the second rainiest month in our history (July, 1901 was a bit wetter). We usually get around 78mm of rain in June, so it was very, very wet. So far we've had around 95mm of rain this month. Our average is 91.7mm for the month, so we are ahead of schedule.
The rain has stopped, at least for now. It's hot, hot, hot outside now. It's supposed to cool down a bit on Sunday and then start going back up to so very hot, maybe with thunder storms. I have the fans going and I'm giving the plants -- especially the tomatoes -- plenty of water. I'm also making sure I drink plenty of water!
The rain was good, for all that it seemed excessive. For the first time in several years, my part of the country is not overwhelmed with forest fires; we're down to 17 active fires (compared to the over 1000 each year for the past few years). The city is not full of smoke for a change; it makes breathing much easier and my throat is not as bothered. Of course, now we're getting hot, dry weather, so the fire risk is there again.
The gardens are doing well, both from insane amounts of rain and now sunshine and heat. My tomatoes are getting many, many flowers. My flowers are thriving, getting taller, and blooming wonderfully.
I am very thankful for the rain that we got this year.
