Many things symbolize the end of summer. The fall fairs. Cobden Fair is over. Renfrew Fair is on this week. I attended the Shawville Fair last Saturday. The weather was perfect and there were huge crowds to see and hear country singer Brett Kissel. The Renfrew County Plowing Match takes place on Saturday, September 17. Lanark County had its plowing match on Saturday, August 20. I spent part of an afternoon there. We visited the Antique Wheels in Motion Harvest Days in Roebuck the following Sunday. We’ve been to a few corn roasts and a crop day luncheon in Winchester with barbecued chicken and corn on the cob. They all symbolized the end of the growing season.
Lawns are easier to mow as the grass is drier. Soybeans have gone from a lush green to a yellowish colour. Maple and oak trees are starting to change colour. Evenings are getting noticeably shorter all the time. Nights are cooler and last week it went down to 6 degrees C on two occasions. One of these mornings towards the end of the month we’ll see frost on the roof. The lake where we spent so much time this summer is quiet now. Only the kayakers — the older folks are out for exercise paddling along the shore.
Many folks find September and October favourite months of the year. The hot, summer months are behind us and now it’s time to catch up and do work around the place that you didn’t feel like doing in the heat.
As we move towards the end of summer and into the fall, weather forecasters tells us to expect that the developing La Niña will continue to strengthen and become a significant driver of weather patterns. The summer pattern is expected to persist and bring widespread above-normal temperatures well past Labour Day
If you love eating fresh fruits and vegetables that are grown in Ontario, this is the time to get them. Bright red tomatoes are everywhere. It’s a real treat and so much better tasting than the greenhouse and imported tomatoes. I love toasted tomato sandwiches.
The other day I picked two pails of tomatoes and made them into juice. There are many bags of green beans — all blanched — in the freezer. We love beans. Sometimes I think you have to be semi-retired in order to keep a garden. Gardening is a lot of work.
Did you notice that there were fewer houseflies this summer? We didn’t have flies outside wanting to get into the house. And that was a surprise because it was a hot summer and ideal weather for flies multiplying. I swatted some flies in the house but not very many. There were hardly any buzz flies. I hate those fast flies. The best way to get them is to turn all the house lights off when it’s dark and turn on a bathroom light. They go for the light. Then close the door and take a flashlight and shine it on a spot on the wall where you can swat it.
The end of summer brings with it certain sadness. Summer is gone only to open the beauty of the autumn season.
