October is one of my favorite months. The gardens are just finishing up and the hills are coming alive with color. As plants die off the lingering colors shine against those dark clouds and snow clouds that are beginning to appear more and more in the skies. Days like this remind me of the summer days, hot days of August and of the more relaxed pace of the winter months ahead.
But until then, I enjoy walking along the creek and hearing the leaves crunch under my feet and the reflections of the leaves on the creek.
I have started the new perennial gardens and am rounding up the pumpkin and gourd crops. This is one of my favorite fall projects, seeing what surprises I have in the gourd crop.
It’s also time to make apple cider. I round up my apples, usually 15 or more bushels or 4 different varieties, and take them to the Amish to have pressed. The Amish don’t use electricity so they power their cider press with a battery. One year pressing the apples took longer than we anticipated so they had to get lanterns out to finish the job. It made for an interesting evening. My fist pressing of cider will be tomorrow. We always freeze some for use in the winter and sell the rest.
As October passes in NW PA we will see a beautiful fall leaf display and numerous Octoberfests. It’s a great time to enjoy the beauty and nature America offers.
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