My Favourite Season

 

I do love autumn.  Whoever wrote that it was a Mellow Season of Fruitfulness certainly summed it up correctly.

Harvest days are rolling to an end and most of the preserving is finished for the year (not that I do that much anymore).  The trees are starting to change colour as Nature quietly but inexorably prepares for the coming of winter.

It is probably my most favourite season for being outdoors. 

The days are still warm but not hot, the balmy air is usually quite calm, I don’t get as easily sunburnt, and there is a sort of sleepy heaviness that settles over everything.

Sometimes I love to sit outside and enjoy it all, without trying to do anything in particular.  I like to just sit and daydream – and have little Nana-Naps when nobody is looking!

I think we should rename our Deck Garden and call it the Garden of Peace, because it is so pleasant sitting out there under the blue skies.

I feel that taking time to sit and relax and enjoy our surroundings is something precious we need to cultivate.  It is the little things like that which make life more meaningful and enjoyable.

Margaret. 😊

 

Autumn is Arriving

 

The first of March is traditionally the start of autumn, but I think we were all hoping that was wrong after experiencing the wettest “summer” for many years.

But the signs are all pointing to the arrival of autumn:

We can see a stand of poplar trees in the distance and they are definitely starting to change colour.  Even the oaks down one of our streets are beginning to turn a dusky brown.

The nights are growing cooler and we begin to think of lighting the fire in the evenings (although we try and put that off as long as possible, or else the winter feels too long).

Some of our mornings are thick with fog, which thankfully so far has been clearing away to quite nice days.

When there is no fog, the air is calm enough for the hot air balloons to be up and cruising through the skies.  I caught sight of this distant one out my window this morning.

Add to all that the urge to tidy up the garden and give the house a good clean.  The general tidy-up before winter is not as well recognised as the urge to spring-clean, but it is there nevertheless.

Not that we will be having any traditional bonfires of fallen leaves – we don’t have enough leaves, and if we did the Council would frown on us if we did start burning them!  All our green waste heads to the local composting station – one of the results of city living. 

For Mittens, life goes on as normal.

I love the balmy days that often accompany Autumn, and this year hope to be able to get outside and enjoy them.

Have a great day 😊

Margaret.

 

Farewell To The Orchard

 

It makes me sad to think that these gorgeous trees, photographed when I visited there on a drizzly day in 2012, are now gone or soon to be gone.

I have a cousin who owns an apple and pear orchard and he is currently busy removing all his trees.  This orchard has been here for over one hundred years and used to be surrounded by other orchards and farmland.

Now it is an island amidst sprawling urban development.  People complain bitterly when the hail cannon is used all night, and spray drift is a major problem (and remember that orchardists must spray if they wish to export).

Add to this the issue of continual low prices and rising overheads, the difficulty of obtaining casual labour, my cousin’s increasing age and the fact that no-one else in the family wishes to take on the business, and I can sympathize with the hard decision my cousin and wife have had to make.

The land will be put down in grassland first, and it will no doubt not be long before subdivision begins.

Progress and change are a continual process and I must not complain.  When my grandfather established this orchard, he had to break in the land first.  That was progress and a huge change in the way the land was used and was really very little different to what is happening today.

It is Black Friday today, the 13 May.  I’m so glad I am not superstitious or I might blame it for not letting me comment on anybody’s blog at the moment!

Hope you have a great day 😊

Margaret.

 

Autumnal Equinox 2022

 

About 4.30am tomorrow morning (Monday 21 March) will be the Autumn Equinox, when day and night become approximately of equal length.

For the first time in weeks, today we are having rain showers.  Yay!  Temperatures are finally dropping as well, which makes it so much easier to sleep at nights although no doubt I will soon be complaining the nights are becoming too cold!

When I drove across the city yesterday I noticed several trees, mostly poplars and gingkos, beginning to display a golden tinge over their leaves.  The oaks are more inclined to look brown.

We don’t usually get the intense autumn foliage colours here as our weather is not cold enough.

This photo was taken a few years ago in the Hawkes Bay, when we were down there on a visit.

I hope everyone is having a happy weekend 😊

Margaret.

 

Autumn Is Coming

 

After a long hot summer, autumn is finally stirring.  Not that any trees are changing colour yet, but the nights are a little cooler and we frequently have dew on the lawn in the morning.

The heat in the sun is not quite as intense and the cats and the rats are both quite happy to sit and warm themselves in it.  When they begin growing thicker fur, we will know the season is definitely changing.

This morning was cool and very still and I was not surprised to see a hot air balloon floating in the clouds above us.  There is something fascinating about this basic form of flight, and it never fails to give me a thrill to see them pass by.

I have a new header photo for this month.  It is one I took a few years ago when visiting Tikitere (usually called Hell’s Gate) near Rotorua.

This very active geothermal area is a little daunting to visit, with things erupting and making unusual noises, but extremely interesting nevertheless.  It is well worth a visit if you are ever in the area.

Cheers,

Margaret 😊

A Carpet Of Acorns

 

We received notice that workmen would be shutting off the water supply to our street today, so I thought I would go for a drive instead.

The weather was a bit dull, but it is always nice to get out into farmland away from the main roads.

I found a lovely old oak tree to park beneath and watch the world go by for an hour or so, but it was a little hair-raising when a couple of acorns landed on the top of the car.

What a noise! 

There were still quite a few acorns up in the tree and they were dropping at regular intervals, along with a few leaves. 

The whole area beneath this tree was covered with acorns – it would be squirrel heaven, if we had them here!  They were like a brown carpet and rolled and crunched under the feet when walked upon.

Autumn would have to be my favourite season of the year.  I love the mellowness of the weather, harvest is in full swing, and it is always interesting to observe the changes in nature as it prepares for cooler weather.

Stay safe and have a happy day 😊

Margaret.

Delighted

I ventured out yesterday by myself for the first time in almost nine weeks – and discovered that I still knew how to drive my car!

It was a pleasant trip across the city to visit my sister-in-law and I enjoyed being out and about, and seeing the autumn colour on so many trees.  Many of the leaves have begun to drop now, and there were piles heaped up in places along the sides of the roads.

  

I also noticed that traffic islands were covered in wild plants all busy flowering and seeding.  They must have been loving the respite from being weeded on a regular basis.

This morning I dropped grand-daughter off at school (her father usually does this, but he worked all night) and then thought I would call in at the supermarket for a few things.

I had barely got inside when I was approached by a lady who said she wanted to “share her good fortune” and dropped a $100 gift voucher into my trolley!  I was so delighted – her wonderful generosity made my day J

Hope your day is going well too,

Margaret.

Autumn

Autumn is my favourite season, only this year I must stay at home and I feel I am missing out on it completely.  So I thought a look for some photos in my archives might remind me what autumn was all about.

Firstly, there is the glorious colour of the trees as they prepare themselves for winter hibernation.  These beautiful trees are Aspens in Arizona, but you get the idea.

Harvest is another great aspect of autumn.  These Queensland Blue iron-bark pumpkins have very tough skins.  We harvested these out of our vegetable garden in 2004.

Autumn is also when the hot summer weather turns decidedly cooler, the nights grow longer, and the first dusting of snow on the mountains appears.

Once harvest is completed, the big Garden Clean-up can begin.  Shrubs are pruned, dead leaves are raked up, weeds are gathered together – and the fun of garden bonfires begins!

One of my favourite activities is walking through piles of fallen leaves.  They crunch and crackle and scatter around you, and they always seem to have that damp earthy smell about them that I typically associate with the autumn season.

Many plants have berries on them at this time of the year – these ones are the hips of a rose.

Finally, I found this painting I had done many years ago and it also reminded me of autumn – in fact, it is titled Autumn Leaves.  It was created using watercolours and fallen pin-oak leaves.

I know many readers are heading into spring with the hope of summer just ahead, but I hope you will forgive me for enjoying these last vestiges of warmth before our winter arrives.

Let us be thankful and appreciate the diversity of nature and the beauty of our different seasons J

Margaret.

An Afternoon Drive

Thank you everyone for your lovely comments yesterday J

Today I thought of going for a drive.  Impossible of course at this time, but I thought that today I could go back and relive a drive that my husband and I did on a lovely autumn day in 2009.

We were staying at Hastings at the time, in the Hawkes Bay, and went for a short afternoon drive along part of the Tukituki River.

We saw many trees covered in autumn beauty.  

The road we took first went past Te Mata Peak, part of the Craggy Range.

The river itself was soon reached and we caught glimpses of it as we traveled along.

We saw children out on horseback.

There were sheep grazing beneath trees clothed in splendid colour.

We drove down one side of the river before crossing over it on this bridge.

Finally, we followed the road back home along the other side of the river.

It was lovely to take a short drive in the countryside – and it is lovely again now to revisit that happy time.

Making joyful memories with the ones you love is the best thing you can ever do in this life,

Margaret.

Autumn

We are now a week past the autumnal equinox (20 March in NZ) and autumn has most definitely arrived.

Late autumn splendour on the farm

The nights are much cooler and some places further south have even had light frosts.  The days are no longer swelteringly hot, but pleasantly warm.  The mellow warmth of autumn is what makes this one of my favourite seasons.

Hamilton city has a very temperate climate so we do not get as much autumn colour as places further south do. 

A lone spot of autumn colour

Birds are now more in evidence again.  Their summer moult is finished, they have no nestlings to care for, now is a time to fatten up before winter cold arrives.

Can you see the thrush who had been eating these berries?

The garden is returning to life after struggling with drought conditions for the last few months.

An autumnal display on Napier's Marine Parade

Autumn harvest is also beginning.

Crab apples ready for picking

When we lived in the country I loved the misty atmosphere of autumn mornings.

Early morning, south of Te Awamutu

Autumn is also the time for cleaning up things before winter, the time for autumn fires in the garden and out on the land.

Clearing tree rubbish on the farm

I am trying to learn to appreciate each season as it happens, instead of my usual complaining about it being too hot or too cold.  This morning we had some rain to water the earth and I am doing my best to look for beauty and be thankful.  The cloud is breaking up now and the sun is peeping through – and I am finding it much easier to be thankful!

Enjoy every day as it unfolds,

Margaret. 

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