Monday 28 August 2017

Signs.

On the way back from Sedbergh the other day we saw a Horse Chestnut tree with deep orange leaves.    The first sign of Autumn we agreed.

Since then I have noticed that there are signs everywhere.   My battery chargers are packed so I can no longer take photographs (when I go out I might try one on my camera and see how I fare).  On the hedge the big, fat rosehips are turning deep red.   Friend W reminded me when we saw them that as children we broken them open, took out the fluffy 'stuff' and chased each other with it - 'itching powder' we called it. 

The blackberries are beginning to ripen and the ones I have eaten are juicy and sweet.   The crab apples outside my kitchen window have all turned bright red.   They are small and hard but actually quite sweet.

My friend P tells me that over in the Lakes, where they live, the Swifts have gone - one of the first sign that Autumn is here.   Here on the farm and House Martins and Swallows are still frantically feeding young.   I wonder if they have any concept at all that they are feeding for the long journey across the sea or is the whole process instinctive - or do we even know? 

There is a nip in the air in the morning.   At the moment we are having quite nice days - but my goodness we deserve it because August has not been a particularly spectacular month in terms of weather.

Certainly up here in the North of the country the harvest is more or less in.   Some fields have already been ploughed up and resown, other fields are golden yellow with stubble.    This most likely means that certainly the corn harvest is over everywhere - but what about rape?    Is it later?   Because there is so little of it around here I have no idea.   We are mostly grass land for cattle and sheep and most of the corn is harvested for feed in the Winter.

It is August Bank Holiday Monday here today.   Some of the shops will be open because we are in a tourist area and there will be lots of people about.   But for people like me who live alone this is the kind of day to try and keep busy -I am not sure how but I shall now take the dog for her morning walk and then, when I return, I shall try and find a job to do.

Enjoy your day.

30 comments:

gz said...

the signs of Autumn are coming fast, but there is also a disease attacking Horse Chestnuts, unfortunately

Derek Faulkner said...

Don't know how it works up north but here in the south rape is the first thing sown and therefore the first thing harvested. The combine harvesters here, as they are cutting the corn are also resowing with rape at the same time, therefore the rape is already showing as seedlings in the corn stubble. The corn will be sown in a month's time. Blackberries have been ripe for a month and every morning hundreds of swallows and martins cross the marsh heading south. Yesterday and today are swelteringly hot and sunny, lovely stuff.

Tom Stephenson said...

I was going to say the same as gz. The leaves have been orange since the late Spring around me.

Darwin Girl said...

And in Australia, the buds are just popping out, lol.

thelma said...

Well our blackberries are sweet, the hens jump up to eat them. We tend to stay in over the Bank holiday as well, too many cars and too many people around on the holidays.

Coppa's girl said...

Our blackberries ripen in July, and it's still high summer here in Spain, with temperatures in the 30's by mid-morning. We're too far south to enjoy much in the way of seasonal changes, apart from the fall of leaves from the plane trees and no flowers on many shrubs. Autumn is the one season I really miss, especially after having lived in Sweden for a while, years ago. The colours there are short lived, but so intense.

Elizabeth said...

A lovely essay on signs of autumn -always a melancholy but lovely season - my favorite.
Do hope you find something engaging to do.
I have taken up needlepoint - and making my own designs - rather fun.
Sending lots of love to you and Tess.

Cro Magnon said...

Still very much in the throws of Summer here; 36 C today. September is probably my favourite month of the year, we carry on swimming, get on with all the work we've ignored, and hopefully find a few mushrooms. Quite a few leaves down, but I think it's just due to drought.

Rachel Phillips said...

Very very hot here today. All the harvest is in here in the east of England, the rape is earlier usually than everything else although this year the barley was first, followed by the rape and then the wheat. it was a bit out of synch because of the hot June. I saw one combine going this morning in a field of beans, always the last to be harvested. The maize will be soon. Feels very much like late summer here rather than early Autumn.

Gwil W said...

The horse chestnuts have been attacked by a moth and are looking terrible. Experts are telling us not to worry. All will be normal next year.

Devon said...

Your weather sounds wonderful with bits of Autumn peeking in today. Here in Northern California it is supposed to be 109 degrees F, or about 43 C. This time of year I always vow to move to a cooler climate!

Librarian said...

Rosehips on the hedgerows here, too - such a lovely time of year, I think! I especially love the mellow evening light that I see here around 8:00 pm these days, it will be later for you as you are an hour "behind" from us here in Germany.

Minigranny said...

Wonderful weather here in Somerset and feeling less like Autumn than of late. Your post from yesterday reminded me about Beetle Drives at our village hall back in the 50's and my parents entertaining themselves by making Readicut rugs - definitely simpler times! Hope that you have a good day.

donna baker said...

I saw a beautiful necklace made of red rose hips once. I loved it. Our summer has been unseasonably cooler than normal. That is so rare as hot and dry is the norm. I hope winter won't be at the other end of the spectrum.

Jules said...

It's still quite mild here today, although the breeze was blowing some leaves from the trees on our morning walk. X

jinxxxygirl said...

Here in Arkansas Pat we have had a spectacular , cooler August... after a brutal hot and dry July... very unusual ..... I have noticed some birds gathering on the electrical wires.. thats always a sign to me of Falls approach... The squirrels don't come by the feeder as much .. they are off collecting their hoard for winter... pinecones are ripening etc... ...Yipee Fall is coming!! Hugs! deb

busybusybeejay said...

WE have a Horse Chestnut in our garden which has a TPO.For the last three years as soon as it got its leaves they started going rusty.We had our local FOorestry Officer round and he told us it a leaf miner that is responsible.It came in from Easrern Europe,starting in Wmbledon, (maybe brought in by a tennis player,It is rapidly going north and east and west!!The trees still produce confers but look such a mess.So sad.

I live in North Wales.Have A look at your local Horse Chestnuts and report back.Has it affected your area?

Sue said...

Yes, there are lots of signs here too. The leaves are falling, the nights are slowly drawing in and the apples are dropping off the trees.

For the first time we have had Swallows raising their young in our open fronted garage. It has been a real privilege to see the three fledglings being taught by their parents. First day was flying from the nest and then back to the beams of the garage, then to the fence of the paddock, later it was high up in the air to catch insects. The following day was lots of medium to high level flying and then the day after that they obviously went off for a long fly out together returning as it went dusk. And then they were gone, fingers crossed our family of five will make their long trek safely ... hopefully to return next year to their now empty nests.

I hope you had a nice Bank Holiday Monday. xx

Sue in Suffolk said...

There is a disease/virus that's bee affecting Horse chestnuts for several years. Luckily they seem to survive their leaves turning brown so early. The Horse Chestnut that has pink flowers isn't affected.
I hope your Bank Holiday sped past.

justjill said...

We have had so much rain, then hot, then sunny. The Barley is worrying the farmers as it has been too wet to combine. I think a lot has been put straight into silage. Still waiting for our blackberries/brambles to ripen although the wild raspberries have all been scoffed. Weird weather. Today very warm and humid. Skies blackening. So possibly more rain.

Frugal in Derbyshire said...

Oooh yes I remember "itchy backs" e use to drop them down the backs of people sitting in front of us in church and wait for them to wriggle. What horrible children we were!

Joanne Noragon said...

This keeping busy bit is tougher than the hardest work we've ever done, isn't it Weave. I don't like it. I took a friend to lunch. End of my contribution to the world. Have a great day.

Wilma said...

May and September are our hottest months, with the mid-summer months being a little cooler. I have the fan aimed right at me as I type this in the mid-day heat. Brilliant sunshine makes me happy with the shade from the deep veranda we built on all sides of the cabana. Looking forward to the slightly cooler "winter" months. Hope you have a nice long autumn.

Midmarsh John said...

A few days ago I noticed that some trees were already losing their leaves. I put it down to a lack of moisture in the ground. Though we have had the occasional short torrential downpour generally it has been very dry here. Two days ago my bird baths were overflowing with water. This morning they were both bone dry.

crafty cat corner said...

Funny you should mention the rape. I don't recall seeing any this year and usually you can't miss it. I wonder why/
Briony
x

Rachel Phillips said...

EU regulation on the use of pesticide to control the flea beetle which can seriously effect rape crops has now come into force. In areas where the threat of flea beetle attack is big there is less rape being grown. In Norfolk there is still rape grown but less of it as this is a flea beetle area and so some farmers have given up because of reduced yields. I hope that helps Briony.

Derek Faulkner said...

Although we still have big acreages of rape here on Sheppey, slugs are a major problem to the rape crops, especially in the seedling/young plant stage. Therefore every autumn the local farmers spread trailer loads of toxic to wildlife, slug pellets across their fields, which doesn't help the hedgehog population one bit.

Heather said...

The field maple leaves were turning yellow at least a week ago down here and berries beginning to take on colour. We have had three or four days of summer weather but today is overcast and I hope a bit cooler as I have run out of clean Tshirts and my washing machine has not been plumbed in yet, owing to new kitchen floor covering going down tomorrow.
I do hope you will soon be wearing yourself out unpacking boxes before much longer! I take a book to bed with me each night, pick it up and think 'No', and then put the light out.

The Weaver of Grass said...

What a lot of interesting information you have given me and also more reminiscences about the games played when we were young. Minigranny I had completely forgotten Beetle Drives and Readycut rugs (our house had one in almost every room - I made two when I was first married - I can still remember what they looked like.) Thanks to you all for filling me in on so many issues I raised - I do love when one of my posts makes you all recall something like this.

UplayOnline said...

I don't recall seeing any this year and usually you can't miss it. I wonder why/


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