Drought conditions persist and continue to intensify.  Spotty showers in the region have missed us here.  Morning dew is a rarity. The ground is hard and extremely dry with a coating of fine powder at the surface.  Dust is a worsening issue to pasture and livestock (particularly for risk of dust pneumonia and pinkeye).  Livestock walking across the pasture raise dust clouds that rise over a couple of feet above the ground. Yards and pastures are brown and crunchy. Bare spots between individual plants continues to increase. Quite a few farmers in the area have been feeding hay or other supplements for a while now. Fire risk is very high. Pond levels continue to drop significantly; many are scummy, more are showing mud rings and even the bottom. It's turned out to be a good time to clean ponds out. Our wet-weather branches haven't run since early Spring 2025. Quite a few mature trees are dying throughout the woods with all leaves brown. A few maple trees are beginning to show Fall color.