the drylands...
This is the area my dad grew up some 70 years ago. There is some good soil in places tucked in these hills and valleys, but rainfall is scarce. Especially back in my dad's day when irrigation was scarce and really cost prohibitive, there were years you got little or no crop. Grasshoppers would also wipe out the crop some years. It was an unforgiving and hard life that broke many a family. His family went through the depression and dust bowl in this harsh environment. My dad and his parents finally moved to Illinois in the early 1960's for a better life. But Nebraska is still home....
Cattle ranching is big in this area but 1800's of acres are needed because grass is scarce some years....
the drylands...
This is the area my dad grew up some 70 years ago. There is some good soil in places tucked in these hills and valleys, but rainfall is scarce. Especially back in my dad's day when irrigation was scarce and really cost prohibitive, there were years you got little or no crop. Grasshoppers would also wipe out the crop some years. It was an unforgiving and hard life that broke many a family. His family went through the depression and dust bowl in this harsh environment. My dad and his parents finally moved to Illinois in the early 1960's for a better life. But Nebraska is still home....
Cattle ranching is big in this area but 1800's of acres are needed because grass is scarce some years....