Its been bone dry here in zone 5 as well - actually beyond bone dry. I dont mind watering, but the lack of rain has other consequences. A little dry is not a bad thing, but we're way past that point now. Everything is planted now and most of it us up and going. Squash, melons, pumpkins, beans are all up and going. Sweet corn is just starting to poke out of the ground, too. All that's left are cucumber and zucchini, which were the last ones planted. Next project is putting up a little rabbit fence to keep them out of my beans. I dont know if I can do anything about deer - im actually thinking about putting up a hot wire, but im not convinced they wont just jump over it anyway. I do, however, take comfort in the fact that I hunt over my garden plot during deer season. A few guilty parties may or may not have ended up in the freezer over the years, but I digress.