In the Spring I had dug up my strawberry patch and completely replaced the tired old plants with new. I selected two varieties, a June bearing (Hood) and an everbearing (Tristar). In their first season I didn't expect much production, and enjoyed only a few fruits now and then as the plants worked hard at establishing their root systems. However the everbearing variety did pretty well at continuing to set fruit late into the season. One evening in October I was surprised to find a ripe strawberry hiding under a leaf. The flavor transported me back to a day in June. The taste of Summer. But though it tasted as good as any I'd eaten all season, this berry was not warm from the sun as it would have been four months earlier. It's cold penetrated my teeth, which caused me to suddenly feel the chill in the air, and I realized I was eating the last strawberry of Summer.

That was how Autumn arrived for me this year.

My main garden project this Fall was the construction of an arch in the center of the front garden. Made of half-inch rebar it is nearly invisible itself, but will provide a framework for supporting several vines planted at it's four corners. The idea and instructions for making it came from an issue of The English Garden magazine. There were many times during the project I was doubtful if it would work and if I would end up having to scrap the whole thing. But in the end it all came together and I'm very pleased with the results.

Some people hate the Fall. In the steady decrease of daylight they see only gloom. With the withering of vine and flower, and the falling of leaf they see only death. The death of what was young and fresh and new only six months before. It's no longer Summer, and there's no going back.

Letting go of Summer can be difficult. For gardeners however, Autumn has it's good points. It brings the gardening year to conclusion. It's nice to be able to put much of the garden to bed for the winter. It's a time to step back and get some distance from the garden, so I will be able to approach it with a new perspective. And to look forward to what will be young and fresh and new again just a few months hence.

One of my favorite days of the year is Halloween. I thoroughly enjoy this holiday of pumpkins and candles, costumes, skeletons, scary movies and "things" that go bump in the night. The front garden received an extensive decking-out this year and was an enticing invitation to passing trick-or-treaters.

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The Fall colors seemed particularly intense this year and we had no early storm blow through and defoliate the trees prematurely, so the seasonal colors lingered a long time. So far, there have been a couple of cold spells giving us some silvery, frosty mornings. But for the most part, temperatures have been pleasantly mild and many days have been bracketed by glowing sunrises and sunsets. When a season has such qualities of it's own, moving on is not so difficult

And letting go of Summer and moving on doesn't necessarily mean you must leave it all behind. I've brought something of Summer with me into the colder, darker months. I have photographs that show how the garden looked this year. In the cupboard there are jars of Red Currant Jelly, which holds the color and flavor of the ripe fruit. This year's harvest of potatoes (47 lbs.) will feed me well into the winter. And of course I have the memories of my time in the garden and the people I shared it with.

That October strawberry did me a good service. It helped me bridge the transition between Summer and Autumn. It contained elements of each and it helped me let go of one and welcome the other.

 

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