Full-On Fall is Here

Jill Severn

Photo by Anna Schlecht

This was the last week the sunset after 6 P.M. and the first week of genuine, normal rain. We have rediscovered the sweaters in our dressers, the fleece in our closets, and the slugs in our lettuce.

It’s full-on fall, and it’s startling how fast the memory of heat and sun fades when the weather makes such a sharp turn towards wet and chilly.

On Monday night, we’ll pass out candy to trick-or-treaters. And on the next Sunday, November 6, we’ll set our clocks back an hour, and the sun will set before 5 PM instead of 6.

Then we’ll be in hardcore fall: the month of November when this year’s leaves let go of their lives and fall to earth. This, of course, has already started: We are already seeing patches of bare sky as space between tree branches opens up. Right now – without delay – is the time to cast some gratitude toward the leaves whose youth last spring lightened our spirits and whose shade protected us during the heat of our summer.

The time of bare branches and darkness at dinnertime is upon us, and we may get our first frost next week.

This is the time of year when we gardeners sort ourselves into two categories: those willing to garden in the rain and those who aren’t. But many of us – willing or not – end up gardening in the rain because we procrastinate. And sometimes, we have a pretty good defense for putting things off.

Planting bulbs, for instance. If flowers are still blooming – and this year, that includes dahlias, cosmos, and late asters – who can bear to clear them out of the way? And if the vegetable garden is still full of broccoli, Swiss chard, and other frost-tolerant greens, where can the garlic bulbs go?

Bulbs have to be bought earlier in the fall before they disappear from the market, but the truth is they don’t really have to be in the ground until early or even mid-December. In the meantime, they need to be in a cool place, like a garage or basement. Right now, that fact is an engraved invitation to procrastination.

Another fall task is planting new shrubs or trees. This can be done now . . . but it can also be put off until early spring.

In the last couple of years, we’ve also learned from biodiversity advocates that it’s downright virtuous to forego a thorough fall garden cleanup for the sake of all the little critters that shelter in the ruins.

So what must gardeners do right now? Whatever we please.

Eating a bumper crop of tomatoes is at the top of my list, followed closely by taking walks to watch the falling leaves and listening to the birds who’ve just arrived for the winter.

On Sunday, carving a pumpkin is on the agenda. So is trying very hard not to eat the Halloween candy myself.

And on Monday, the last day of our mostly bright blue-sky October, the morning after Halloween is the beginning of the holiday season.  That’s the time to start the preseason warm-up of trying new recipes and new exercise regimes. Somewhere, a food writer is already hard at work on a new twist on green bean side dishes. And in the next few weeks, we’d be wise to shed a few pounds to make room in our jeans for all those holiday casseroles, cookies, and pies.

It’s a fortunate feature of the earth’s annual trip around the sun that as these plans and activities demand more of our attention, our gardens demand less.

Jill Severn writes from her home in Olympia, where she grows vegetables, flowers, and a small flock of chickens. She loves conversation among gardeners. Start one by emailing her at  jill@theJOLTnews.com