USAID programs

The humanitarian trips have been part of a three part support:
United States Agency of International Development - USAID
ADCI VOCA - contractor
Farmer to Farmer - program.
The Farmer to Farmer program is within various USAID
contractor groups, such
as ACDI VOCA, Winrock International, CNFA, and
 Partners of the Americas.

In my natural environment in Kurgon Teppa, Tajikistan.

The weather in Tajikistan is similar to the weather in Oregon;  lows
 around 32-35  and high 43-50, mostly cloud for the nest week.  However,
 we got 4 inches of snow  in Dushanbe last night.

Met with around 650 people these past two weeks, teaching them about
 how to prune fruit trees, how to graft and how to keep their orchards health.

I realize that when my wife and I travel for humanitarian service, that we now
have friends all over the world.  That is a truly amazing blessing.  We teach the
people, they teach us by being humble and thankful.  Many have never seen an
American and by bring pruning equipment (thanks to many who have donated
 and to Emerald Empire Kiwanis for many donations)  have given them the
opportunity to double their income in two years.  334 pruners, 337 saws, 164
grafting knives and 102 hand lens, donations of over $21 284.  Thank you
 donors.  The people of 38 countries thank you.

Post Christmas

Post Christmas - weather remains on the chilly
side.  Lows around 31 with highs around 50.

Start preparing your garden new years resolutions,
 yes, what you want to plant;  when you want to plant;
 what you DON'T want to plant; gardening to does;
gardening NOT to does this year.

Pruning is on the calendar right now for all fruit
 trees and berry bushes.

Mulch the base of roses and blueberries as the cold
 weather still has three months to affect plants in the
 ground.  Cover any bulbs that have been planted
 this fall.  Did one bulb up to see if the December
 hard freeze affected the bulbs.  Just put it into a pot
 with soil and place it near the window with sun light
and see what happens.

Christmas

Christmas will soon be upon us.
It may be celebrated in a variety of modes and fashions.
Please take time to honor parents, family and friends - those
 that help to keep us sane;  to listen when we need to
whine; to help us walk in places we don't want to walk;
 to just be there to hold our hand or to just talk.

The weather will be OK, highs of 48 and lows around
or for the European's near zero C.  Mostly sunny the
 next week, barring the unforeseen rain event.

I just drove thru southern Tajikistan, near the Uzbekistan
 and Afghanistan borders, the grass is green and up
 over an inch.  March 21 is their official spring.

I will be spending the next two days, yes Christmas day -
 teaching field days to around 120 growers who NEED
 to learn how to prune their apricot and fruit trees.  Most
 trees so far have NEVER been pruned so they are in
GREAT need of pruning.  I have very mixed feelings of 
missing family but being able to help people change their
 lives forever and double their income.

I will be 9000 miles from home, sorely missing family and
friends, so please this season; share the joy with someone
 just for me. I will be sharing so please share also.

Holiday time

The holiday time is quickly coming upon us.
A time to again be with family, friends, relatives.

Take time to be grateful for simple things as toilets -

 I am again in Tajikistan teaching people how to
grow food by pruning and orchard management.  . 
There are more cell phones than toilets in the country. 
60% of young people and children get sick from
bad water. 

It is sickening when you see a young mother
 with two young children getting water out of a ditch
which has dogs and  cattle walking and ****** into the
water;  cars splashing mud and who know what into
 the water.  I have seen housing dumping raw sewage
 into these water canals. 

There was an outhouse which was used, a lot.  After using
 the outhouse I walked back to our group.  The city water
 supply ran 3 foot from the back of he outhouse and the outhouse
has***** materials flowing over the ground.  Be sooooooo
 thankful we live where water is soooo
clean.  Where food is prepared in a safer environment.
Tis the season to be very, very, very thankful for our living
 conditions.
Also, the further from the cities, the small communities
 have 1-2 total hours of electricity PER day.  No more
 complaining for two weeks!!!!!!!

Weather review

Cold at nights for the next two nights, predicted
27 and 29.
Day time temps in the mid to high 40's.
Rain early on and then looks some sunny weather.
Typical winter weather.  Wait 5 minutes and
 the weather will change.

Winter activity

With the cold and snowy weather, now is the
 time to think about ordering garden seeds.  There
 are many good catalogs where you can order
 good quality seeds. 

Check your left over seeds
 as they start to go bad after a few years and
germination may not be very good.

Find a warm corner, usually on top of the hot
water tank, place 100 seeds between two, moist
paper towels and after a week, see how many of
 the seeds have germinated.  Count the number of
 seeds that have sprouted and this will tell you the
 % of good seeds in the package.  75% is good. 
I have still used seed at 50%, I just planted
 them thicker.

More winter weather

Some people are all ready starting to talk about
 planting new crops for 2014.  You just have to
 love optimism.  Just remember here it is only
December, and winter has jut begun, with at last
part of December, January, February and part of
 March before we can plant outside; in most cases.

Crazy weather is one reason why we have indoor grow
 lights, heated greenhouses, and modified cold frames
for growing food ALL year long.

Some cold-ist weather predicted for this week.  Watch
 out of the few days under 32 degrees again.  Without
 the snow, the ground will start to freeze again.

More cold weather predicted

Another Cold One?

 Long time patrons know The WxCafe (TM) strives

 to provide a 'heads-up' whenever nature may bring 

on weather patterns that can have impact. The current

 Arctic Event was "seen" early by wx models with a

 frequency that warranted prognosticating.

 Well, for the past couple of days, models have hinted at 

yet another ARCTIC type wx episode. (Gee, we haven't

 even cleared out the current cold air yet). If this event

 takes place, the transition back into the freezer will be Wed 

or Thur NEXT WEEK. The air will be an Arctic shot & 

sub-freezing again, and will either last until Sun Dec 22 or

 beyond. The most recent model run progged wintery 

conditions all the way through Christmas, with periodic 

snow showers dropping in from the northwest.

 For now, simply be aware of the possibility for another 

round of cold weather starting later next week. By Friday 

morning we will have more definitive information as to

whether or not this scenario verifies.

-Rufus   http://www.ovs.com/weather_cafe.htm

???

Warm weather is coming - hopefully this weekend.      
Be prepared for any broken pipes   As the weather warms,
be sure you know where all of the turn off values are located.

Fortunately the buds are still dormant.  If this happened
in February, there would be a lot of young leaves that
have freeze and/or bud damage due to the 9 to -10
degree weather.   

From Rufus

Monday December 9

 From below zero temps in Eugene (with 8" snow) to 7F in Portland,

 it was a bitterly cold weekend. Conditions this morning aren't much

 better, with single digits up to 16 around the Willamette Valley.

You'll recall expectations last week were for warmer, wet systems to

 knock on the freezer door as early as Tues. Well, that has now been

 pushed back to sometime Thur, or with the latest run, into Fri. Many 

of us want warmer temps, as already the heating bill for December will

 cut into disposable income in January. Anyway, the Arctic event will

 hold for most - with incremental bumps up in daytime temps - through

Wed or Thur at least.

The weekend will be damp, with temps in the 40s and mostly cloudy.

Many folks will find out late this week if their plumbing protection

 program worked, as the great thaw of December 2013 begins.

  

http://www.ovs.com/weather_cafe.htm

Next few days

The next few sin  Oregon and much of the US will be
 seeing a slightly different weather pattern.

Monday the day time temps will rise above 32 and
Wednesday the evening temps will be above 32 degrees.
Back to more normal winter temps.  Yeah, I can finally sleep
 the whole night and not check pipes and outside temps
.
Be aware that rooms next to unheated areas, such as
 laundry rooms need to be heated or run the washer, both
 hot and cold several times a day.  Place a thermometer
 in cold rooms next to the un heated area/walls to make sure
the temps are ABOVE 32 degrees.  The cold has been creeping
 into the unheated rooms and I had areas just above 32 degrees
 with water courses.

In out buildings, we are seeing a LOT of frozen pipes. 
Since it is ONLY December, this is a wake up call for the
 rest of the winter. 

When using heat lamps for thawing, place them very
carefully near the pipes.  In small areas, an incandescent
 light bulb works wonders.

If there is no heat, the dripping faucet works very well.
 If the laundry room  or out side rooms are getting close
 to 32 degrees; use the washer to run small loads; or physically
 turn the water on to keep the pipe water moving.

Since many outside pipes MAY be frozen, turn the water
source off today (or try and find where the pipe turn off valve
 is located) as Monday, the pipes should  unfreeze, and water
 coming from the broken pipes.

Cold weather

In  the snow areas, knock the snow off of
 arborvitae, box woods and other small bushes

Remove the snow from off of the cold frames,
but more important, from any large cold frames or
greenhouses as the weight with 4-6 inches is a lot.

Snow on the ground is the best thing to help keep
the deep groundwater pipes from freezing.  Two days
ago the ground had frozen to about 12 inches.

Cold

With the cold weather and below 32, pipes
 become a big worry.
Drain all garden equipment with water ASAP..
Empty hoses and drain irrigation systems.

Turn on house or barn faucets to just beyond drip.
and let it run all night or until weather is above 33 degrees. 
 Make sure the faucet is the furthest from the water sources.

Open up cupboards on cold walls to add extra heat to the piping.

Cover the vents in the foundation.

If you know to where the water pipe is buried, cover the
 area with leaves, straw or snow for added insulation.

Today

Have a good evening.

Have a better week.

Have a great month!!!

Weekend

A great weekend for some - non Thanksgiving
exercise and activities.  Continue to get the garden
put to bed or at least those parts not still growing. 
Cabbage doing good, but chard got hit hard with
cold weather.  Outside warm season plants-they
have been frozen and are gone.

If you have maple trees, finish the last composting or
 mulching of the leaves.  (Remove the leaves from
 the house gutters.)   We have a LOT of leaves this
year.

One last mowing of grass or weeds.

Weather

COLD SNAP

 A modified Arctic front will push south out of 

Canada into the PNW in the late Sunday night thru 

Monday night.  Arrival is not precise.  Breezy rainfall 

on Sunday will transition to lowering snowfall levels

 by Monday. Post-holiday travel home over the

 mountains will be difficult. If the system arrives

 earlier, even the coast range could see snowfall on 

Sunday. SNOW showers will be probable at all elevations 

by Monday night/Tuesday.

 Temps will plummet into the teens west side in wind 

sheltered areas.   Current weather hints of a slow warming

 by Fri/Sat, Dec 6,7. Another cold clipper may touch us

 by Sunday/Monday Dec 8,9 for rain at the surface, snow

 at low elevations. This event will be the coldest in quite 

some time, so be prepared (livestock water, plumbing, etc).     

 http://www.ovs.com/weather_cafe.htm

Thanks

This is the time of year to give thanks for
what we have.

For where we live.

For MANY modern conveniences we have to
 make our lives a blessing, while living in a
world that often people have so little.

The first Thanksgiving was one of sharing and fellowship. 
This is a great example for us this Thanksgiving season.

Pre thanksgiving

More pretty good weather, lows of
42F and highs of 55F.

No rain for a while, more time to catch
 up this week on chore that we haven't
 got to yet.

Quick review:
Empty hoses.
Empty irrigation systems, leave the end open to
drain all winter but keep it closed enough to keep
 mice and slugs out of the pipes.

Drain any spraying equipment.  Store organic or
conventional pesticides in a place they won't get
wet or freeze.  Do not store in the well house.

Clean and oil garden tools.
Prep garden motor equipment by running the
engine out of gas, thru the spark plug add a little
oil and crank the engine to distribute the oil.

NOTE:  Do not use gas with ethanol, it ruins 2
cycle engines, look for the old leaded gas.

 

This week

On and off wet weather with
more wet weather next week.

Temps ranging from lows of 30-39 F;
with highs of 46-52 F.

Good weather to clean up the leaves; 
one final lawn mowing;  control unwanted
weeds;  remove the warm season plants
from the garden or do some spring prep
on fields and orchards.

Holiday's

Take time to have a good Thanksgiving day.
Relax, enjoy your friends.

Enjoy the day with family, friends and/or relatives.

Try to incorporate some of the marvelous bounty
of the past years produce in the holiday meals.

It is a time to be thankful for living in a great
country that provides us with untold opportunity
and bounty.

After traveling to many foreign countries, be
 thankful for living in a free country, were we
have the opportunity to elect our officials. 

To live in a country where most people are
pretty well off;  not as in other countries that people make
$20-100 per month and where doubling their income
can be accomplished by teaching people how to prune,
 how to sort fruit, and how to direct market produce.

Yes, we have it pretty easy here.

This past trip we are very thankful now for a
 toilet that flushes.

Nice but cold

The next while will be very nice, sunny but on
 the cold side, ranging from 27 degrees to 40
degrees during the night;  t hen shy rocketing to
 a high of around 52 degrees.

Cover the faucets, drain the hoses, protect
watering features and animal dishes.

Any warm season plants will be "done" if not
protected with walls of water or mini greenhouses
or cloches.

A good week to finish cleaning up the warm season
plants from the garden;  maybe too late for
 transplanting but hey, why not.

Tree fruits should all be picked, stored and/or
preserved.  Nuts - should be dried.

Winter squash placed in a protected area where
the squash won't freeze, especially the next 4-5 days.

Fall crops

The fall cole crops planted in September are still doing
quite well.  Kind of slow growing but still growing.

So far the weather is near perfect for growing the
cole or cool crops that grow well in the cool weather.

Growing cabbage, lettuce, kale, fava beans,  garlic,
cauliflower, collards, kale, kohlrabi, mustards, turnips.

Fall

There are a LOT of leaves still falling from the
trees, especially maple, oak and birch trees.  The
maples are covered with the "whirly bird seeds"
which is often an indication of a colder winter.

Rake, mow, compost the leaves.  They are great
for the garden, for putting into the flower bed, for
placing around colder sensitive blueberry bushes
with shallow roots.

It looks like we will behaving a nice, LONGGGGGGGG
fall, winter period, as the fall started back in mid
September and  the cooler weather usually lasts until
 after March or mid April.  That could be as long as
6-7 months. 

What we really need is .......................a lot of rain. 
Yes rain and 15 foot of snow in the mountains.  The
last three years have been really down on moisture
so a good, wet-snowy year would do wonders for
 the ground water which looks to be down a lot this year.

Pre holidays

Ag is slowing down as the holidays approach.

Some farm produce stands still providing product.

Pruning starting.

Field renovations - starting.

Growers getting ready for ag meetings and 2014.

Enjoy the holidays as they provide a time
to slow down and enjoy family.

Rain + -

Rain, good and bad.

We need the rain to fill up the depleted groundwater,
actually around 60-100 inches would do the trick;
but it makes yard, garden and farm work tough.

Pruning has started..  In January thru May there
will be about 35 opportunities to take a good  class
on pruning to learn the principles to prune most
anything, but we spend the most time on tree fruits.

Anyone wanting to the Master Gardner class, register
ASAP as the intro class is the first week of December
and the regular class starts the second week of
January and goes for around 10 weeks.

To Does

Weeds are growing crazily.

Mulch the garden to keep the soil
from becoming compacted.  The mulch
will also keep the winter weeds under control.
If not, the weed hoe will make them short timers.

Use all of the leaves for mulching in the flower
beds, good for mulch &  protect from cold,
freezing weather and will protect bulbs.

Empty any remaining hoses of water
so they don't crack from water
freezing.

Indian summer

We have been enjoying a few more days
of the glorious Indian summer.

Most of the fruit has been picked.  Most of the
hazelnuts and walnuts have been picked and
dried.

Winter gardeners are actually doing quite well.

Most of the tree fruits are loosing their leaves
so pruning can start in the next three weeks.

Raspberries should have been done by now. 
Other berries need pruning between
December and March.

Roses need pruning down to 14 inches, then
 in mid February prune the hybrid teas back
to 6 inches.

This week

Weather turning cool and wet.
Most fields reseeded for spring
crops or cover crops.

Hazelnuts - mostly done.  Good yields.

Apple and pears - mostly done.
Medium to good yields.

Indications are that we will be having
a longer, cooler or colder winter. 
Since the weather changed in October,
we could have up to 6 months of winter.

With the late infestation of spotted
wing drosophila, be aware that if we
have a normal spring, we could have a
very high SWD infestation.

Prep

With the cold weather coming upon us, take the
 time to do a little prep for the winter time.  Some
call it the 72 hour pack.  A pack that contains food,
 water and shelter that will help you remain dry and
 fed for at least 72 hours.

Next, have a storage of water, food, shelter, heat
 that can sustain you for a week, a month or even
 a year.  The way things are going, having a back
 up food and water supply may be a necessity.  

Produce

Great time to use some of your produce,
dried, fresh or canned.

Fresh broccoli,  onions, garlic, potatoes,
carrots, etc.

Then apples, winter pears, hazelnuts.

Chestnuts are falling.  Go to the internet to ID
which chestnut your might have.  We typically
have two, horse chestnut or American chestnut.
The horse chestnut is not good good to eat.
The American chestnut is the one that is used to
 roast for the holidays.

Looks like ran for the next few days.

Get the leaves picked up on the lawns
or other living materials to prevent
smothering..

Place the leaves on flower beds, around
roses, blueberries or compost in piles.  Be
sure to add nitrogen to start the break down
 process and cover to keep from getting too
wet this winter.

Place winter squash in a protected area.

Garlic still slow at emerging.

This week

Most of the hazelnut harvest is over. 
A few waiting for the last nuts to fall. 
The next few rainy days  will delay any
harvesting for a while.

Some late apples and pears.

Pumpkins and farm Halloween events were
able to make a come back with the good
weather.  The last few days have been
hectic for the local farm stands - which
is good.

The next few days of rain will dampen most
of the ag activities in the area.

Great fall

So far we have had a great fall.  A little Indian
summer, a little very cool, and a  little very nice
and warm weather.

Red and golden delicious apples are ripening
very nicely on the trees.
 
Maple trees are really dumping a lot of leaves,
due to the warm summer, hot weather and
lack of moisture.

Many deciduous and conifer trees have yellowing
leaves and needles, mainly due to the lack
of water and very warm summer temps. 

Fall

Grass seed showing new plant emerging.
Hazelnut crop - pretty much done.
some late apples.
Some late pers.
pumpkins - hammered with powdery mildew.
Some grapes hurt with rain, and powdery mildew
and I heard quite a stir about spotted wing drosophilia
affecting the damaged grapes.
Farm stands will strong with the good weather.

Indian sumer - continues

The Indian sumemrs continues.
Temps in the highs of 70-54 degrees,
the lows of 45 to 39 degrees.

Warm season plants will continue to ripen
during the day.  With the calenderis  heading
toward November, maybe time to think
about a tansition, just a suggestion.
  ::)

With this weather people can still transplant,
I wouldn't seed, but transplant cole crops. 
Anything that is leafy should get some good
growth.  The cabbage and broccolli, may be
too late but just depends on the temps.

 

Life and gardens

Family and friends are like a garden. It starts out young, very fragiile
and can be affected by many things.

Over time the garden grows, is watered, is fertilized, and
eventually produces fruit.

The fruit is picked, shared, and used for the benefit of our
family and freinds. In the spring it starts all over again.

Life is like that- take advantage of our garden (family,
friends) - they too grow old and move on. Sometimes that
 happens before we are ready....... and we have lost the
moment to cultivate -- those relationships.

Good weather until around Nov. 3. Continue to pick apples, Asian pears, winter pears. Hazelnuts should be close to being done, if not, get done by Nov.3. Continue to harvest, use and replant cole for the extended warm weather for winter usage. Store winter squash before the next rain. Wash with Clorox to remove the powdery mildew which will rot the the squash.

Apples - dry, juice or sauce

Indian summer

Our long awaited Indian summer is finally here,
or at least has been here for one week and looks
like it will be here for another 10 days.  Temps
look pretty good ranging from a high of 69 to
 a low of 40 degrees.  Day time temps will allow
for warm season veggies to continue to grow
but early temps are pretty chilly for warm season
plants.  Great weather for the winter garden cole
crops.

Hazelnut harvest - some waiting for a good wind
storm to bring down the last of the hazelnuts or
finish their third sweeping of nuts.

Cole crops doing very well.

Irrigation systems on the valley floor OK but
watch for temps reaching 32 which has happened
in the foot hills.

Red delicious apples - nicely ripening.

Third crop of figs didn't make it, boo.

Pumpkins- great crop this year and great weather
for visiting the pumpkin rides and local
produce stands.

Cold Indian summer

Looks like it is going to be a cold Indian
Summer.  8 more days of sunshine but temps
 in the lows of 34 degrees and highs around
60-65, so pretty cool.

The weather is NOT going to help  ripen
more tomatoes or warm season plants unless
they are put under plastic.

Great weather to finish the hazelnut harvest. 
Find the new hazelnuts at many of the local
farms stands.

Plant away at the fall cole crops.

The Indian summer is kind of here.
Hazelnuts still being harvested, a lot
have been harvested this week.

Cole crops going to seed again.

Anyone seeing any garlic emerging yet. 
If not, the garlic crop is slow at emerging
this fall so far.

Drying some great Walla Walla onions.

Sunshine on my face

It is sunny and I almost got a sun burn on my face.
Good weather for awhile, with intermittent drippings.

Harvesting of hazelnuts is in a flurry.

Some apples and pears, rain has just been a nuisance.
Farms that have hay rides has been really impacted
by the rainy weekends, few people coming out.
Pumpkin sales are down a bit but we have 2 weeks to go.

Corn season has actually been really good this year.
Ge your last seasons corn ASAP.

Lawn grass was too high, mower time.
Lots of weeds in the garden area, booooo.

Sunshine - in the future

I am sitting, writing as it is raining, again.
I was in Washington state yesterday and it
rained....really rained all the way to Corvallis.

As I am writing on the blog and FB group pages,
the rain is really coming down.  So much for the
Indian summer.  But wait, the next 5 days are suppose
 to be sunny with partial clouds.  Wow -------
the clouds just opened up for even harder rain. 
Maybe I had better stop talking about the R- word.

Lawns are starting to get a bit long.
Weeds are amassing on open soil again - time to do
some light soil disruption and then mulch with
 4-6 inches of mulch/compost materials.

Heard today that the spotted wing drosophila (SWD)
 is hammering the wine grapes.  The rain caused
some splitting so the  splitting made it easy for the SWD
 to enter  into the grapes - wine with protein, a
new product and new marketing opportunity!!!!!

Fall gardens

Great weather the last few days.
Looks like rainy weather for the next
two to three days.  Kind of light rain.

Time to start cleaning up the yard and garden. 
Looks like the Indian summer isn't gong to
happen this year.  Temps the next week, 42
low and 60 high.

Still time to get some cole crops in for
growing  this fall and winter.

Add mulch to any bare garden soil to prevent
 the rain from composting the soil. 
then add more compost/mulch in the spring.

Drain the hoses, irrigation system and sprinklers.
 Leave one hose set ans sprinkler out just in
case the Indian summer returns.

Weather update

Cold this AM, 43 degrees in Eugene,
colder in the foothills.
The next 6 days, lows of 39 degrees!!!
and the high of 50.

A lot of hazelnuts still on the wet ground,
we need a few more days of day weather so the
hazelnut growers can get the nuts harvested.

The warm season veggies, just not looking very good;. 
Most of the thicker skinned tomatoes are still OK
 and not splitting but that is due to the tougher green
or pink skins.  Once the tomatoes ripen or mature,
the skins split with the rains pretty easily.  A lot
of people are making green tomato products.

Chilly

More chilly weather, temps dropping into
the 40's, also more of the wet stuff.

Get the grapes off ASAP.  The more wet,
the riper the grapes get.... the greater chance
of the grapes splitting.  Plus the more rain,
the rain will cause the grapes to have less
sugar and acid - due to dilution by the rain.

Apples and pears - OK in the rain.

Hazelnuts - the soil will become more wet
and start to be picked up in the harvester..
it is called mudding the nuts.

Storm

By now most everyone from Grants Pass to north
Seattle are aware of the excessive rain, with heavy
rain in the Eugene-Corvallis area and the Seattle area. 
So far the weather reports have been pretty accurate. 
The next 8 days show 6 of 8 days with rain, so we
 need to be vigilant.  Keep gutters clean, dig ditches
for excessive water;  keep water moving slowly
INTO the soil to replenish the groundwater.

Rain

Looks like the weather warning was a bit
harsher than predicted but a couple more
days to worry.
Looks like Seattle was the center of the heavy
rains, not southern Oregon.
Looks like rain for 6-8 days this next weeks.
Time to be sue the gutters are clean and small
ditches around the house for the next few days.

Weather info: Friday September 27  BE AWARE

 

History in the making for the PNW over the next few days: 

The Deluge of 2013. While specific location details are yet 

to be determined because nature spins its weather cycle.

 Everyone in the region will be impacted by the upcoming

rain/wind event.

 

The Rain: between today and Monday afternoon, esp in 

western Oregon, the amount of rainfall due to arrive will 

be measured in multiples - of inches and impact. Southern 

OR coastal zones 8-12 inches; central/northern coastal zones 

6-9 inches; Willamette Valley anywhere from 2-5 inches.  With

leaves beginning to drop, localized street flooding will be 

elevated even more than usual, as the amount of water will

 seem biblical given the short period of time. Creeks and rivers 

are not super high to start, so this will be a blessing, however, 

the freezing zone will be high, so almost all the precip will

 simply rush downhill. If your location is flood prone, best to 

prepare just in case.

 

The Wind:  Winds will be strong enough to potentially cause

 power outages, limb fall, etc. as foliage will accentuate the

 impact. Rural patrons may want to inventory potable water

 in case power is out for a few hours. Safe not sorry.

 

The Future: OK, everyone asks, when will the onslaught stop? 

Maybe by the middle of next week the daily precip will cease,

 but not for long, as models hint of more rain and breezy 

conditions by the weekend of Oct 5,6. We can only hope

for model error. Some recent solutions hold us in an overall

 wet pattern through the middle of October. Oh my. Update

Monday.

 

Oregon, -Rufus