Transitions
You can feel it in the air, the transition into fall. You can see it in the plants around your house or around your favorite walking path. You can see it in the veggies that come in your CSA share each week. You can see that sunset gets a bit earlier each night, and that the sky is bluer than the summer sky, which gets hazy due to all the humidity in the southern air.
The days are cool enough to plant fall greens- lettuce, arugula, kale, mustard greens, turnip greens, radishes, cabbages, chard, and more, are all in the ground. Sweet potatoes are due to be harvested in the next few weeks, and we are already seeing winter squashes coming in. This week we are sending pumpkins. Pumpkins are a winter squash, but they have an iconic cultural meaning in America. Most of us are reminded of Halloween and Thanksgiving, but more broadly pumpkins represent the abundant fall harvest.
Harvest festivals abound this time of year, and often celebrations are spread from now until the winter solstice. This weekend up at the farm, we will be celebrating the Autumn Equinox (the actual date is 9/23 this year, even though due to time zones, for us it will occur on the night of the 22nd)- the official start to fall, when day and night reach approximately the same length, and more specifically the sun crosses south over the celestial equator.
To my great delight, I felt my first chill last week, and pulled out the first of my cool-weather clothes for the occasion. After such a hot summer, it was like a dream come true. On crisp nights many of us like to go out and gaze at the stars, which begin to shine clearer due to lower humidity. Building, and I suppose more to the point, sitting by a fire, seems possible again without melting or sweating profusely.
In line with the equinox and celebrations, Jeff is having an equinox party this weekend in the Solstice field (the big side of the farm), with live music, camping, and of course- a fire! It all begins on Friday afternoon and wraps up on Sunday afternoon. Everyone is welcome, bring your own… well… everything! That means camping gear, food, instruments, & alcohol. No dogs please. Hope to see some of you there!
This Week’s Harvest: Mixed Winter Squash, Pumpkins, Tomatoes, Peppers, Potatoes, Summer Squash, Cucumbers, Garlic, Basil, Parsley