Falling into Fall

There was something about the crispy morning air on Friday, something familiar, and fresh, and welcome. It wasn’t immediately obvious what had happened, and them, as I snuggled back under our down cover it hit me- fall has arrived!! In our small coastal town, we have an extended summer, which often seeps its way into half of spring and ends well into what many other areas would define as fall. Thus, the transition is oft celebrated- at least by those of us constantly warm bodied individuals grateful for a temperature refuge. As if the smell and feel of crispy air wasn’t enough of a clue, the chickens, now fully grown, are dropping and gaining feathers as quick as they devour our few remaining corn kernels. Our tomatoes are winding down their exuberant production, the raspberry plant- which provided a lovely sweet treat after work each day- has dropped its leaves, and perhaps the most telling of all Fall harbingers- my husband is wearing his red and blue plaid pjs around the house! Fall is my favorite time of year! It feels like we are able to reclaim (at least temporarily) our town from the throngs of tourists flocking to our coastal oasis, apples are dripping from the trees (well at least everyone else’ trees, I already consumed ours too early because I couldn’t wait to try them), and some of my favorite veggies line the stalls at the farmers market! Butternut squash, brussel sprouts, artichokes, spaghetti squash mmmm, I can almost taste the homemade soups and feel their warm goodness on a cold night! This also means I will be cleaning up some of the wildness in the garden and hopefully getting some cover crop in our garden beds in the coming weeks!