The Drought of 2012

Have you seen the cost of corn go up due to the drought?   How is your landscaping reacting to the lack of rain?

If you have not seen prices inch higher, you soon will. America is experiencing drought-like conditions across the entire county. Michigan alone had their 10th driest June on record and then had record setting heat in the first week of July.

The US Drought Monitor, last updated on July 3, 2012, can help to visualize that our county is mostly covered in “Abnormally Dry” conditions.  How do drought-like conditions  impact our enviornmental and economical standard of living?

At The Supermarket

Corn could be called America’s staple. With this record setting heat that is leading to drought like conditions, the crop has been drastically reduced. The Corn and Soybean Digest are comparing this year’s drought to the drought in 1988 which is one of the worst on record.

“Large portions of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, Missouri and other states are indicating potential for major crop losses, while growing areas of Nebraska, Minnesota and South Dakota are facing serious extended dryness that could lower crop yields.”

In numbers, what that means is the CBOT or Chicago Board of Trade reports prices rose from the December contract $5.06 a bushel as recently June 15th to $7.75 as of July 9th.

Taking A Deeper Look

Let’s take a deeper look at a state like Michigan. Michigan not only has the 5 Great Lakes, but also boasts over 11,000 inland lakes according to the Department of Natural Resources. The state is full of water, so why are they calling this a drought? The Detroit Free Press reported:

“Lake Michigan-Huron is 8 inches lower than its level of a year ago, according to a July 6 report on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers website. Lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are 10, 13, and 15 inches, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago.”

The Free Press also reports that nationally, June had ended the warmest 12-month period that The United States has experienced since 1895, when the record keeping began.

Landscaping and the Rootwell System

The key to keeping your trees alive and your garden growing during a drought is the Rootwell System. In times of drought, you can just simply pour a bucket of water into the installed Rootwells with sufficient enough water for your tree or plants to survive the current drought conditions.