Fire danger is high.  Our water is at about -4 inches below normal for the growing season, and we are beginning to feel it.  For the past 3 months, we have received less than half the usual.  Tops of the ash trees are starting to yellow - they are usually earlier than other species, but this is quite a bit earlier.  The yellowing seems general, and I have not seen exit holes from the emerald ash borer, so hopefully the trees in the nearby area have not been infected yet.  I have been applying quite a bit of water to the gardens.  Some of the blackberry vines are not doing well at plumping their berries, in the drier areas, the ripe berries may be drying on the vine. We still have gotten a really good crop of early blackberries. Not many things are blooming now, other than weeds.  Bees are visiting the thistles, bur chervil, wild carrot, wall lettuce, and even tansy ragwort.  There do not seem to be many larvae of the cinnabar moth this year, but there are plenty thistle gall wasps.  Nearly every thistle stalk has a swelling near the top. There is plenty deer browse in the forest, and I see 3 fawns about. Chipmunks are plentiful, to the amusement of the barn cats.  People have been playing in the Clackamas River and its tributaries now that the water now not so cold.