Field Notes: 2nd - 9th September 2024
Sep 14, 2024
Field Record: What’s been happening on the 107 acres of Honeydale Farm?
The golden-rod is yellow;
The corn is turning brown;
The trees in apple orchards
With fruit are bending down.
The gentian’s bluest fringes
In dusty pods the milkweed
Its hidden silk has spun.
The sedges flaunt their harvest,
In every meadow nook;
And asters by the brook-side
Make asters in the brook …
From dewy lanes at morning
The grapes' sweet odours rise;
At noon the roads all flutter
With yellow butterflies.
By all these lovely tokens
With summer's best of weather,
And autumn's best of cheer.
September is a month of transition: the gateway into autumn. We’ve bid farewell to summer, the trees have begun to change to a faint yellow and a cool breeze is blowing over our fields. Over the weekend, we had a storm over the farm with thunder, lightning and lashing rain. Folklore says that “thunder in September indicates a good crop of grains and fruits the next year,” so, we’re choosing to see our storm as a blessing and a good omen of harvests to come.
The harvest moon has begun to rise, big and yellow over the horizon, due to reach its peak on 17th September. The hedgerows are bursting with deep purple elderberries, crimson hawthorns and rosehips. Horse chestnut trees are heavy with conquers.
Flocks of goldfinches are flying along the hedges, establishing their autumn territories, and the air is filled with the sound of crickets; which seem to have had a late summer resurgence.
In the hives, the Bumblebee queens are laying fewer and fewer eggs as they reach the end of their cycle, while their daughters prepare for hibernation by feeding on the last of the year’s nectar.
Events Recap: What’s on at FarmED?
Moreton Show
Our rainfall simulator looking lovely in the sunshine
On Saturday, we made our way down to the Moreton show. It was a brilliant day, with lots of people stopping by the tent to find out a bit about what we do and what we are all about. In the tent, we had plenty to look at and keep people entertained: a brand-new rainfall simulator designed by our intern, Henry, a basket of apples to try from our heritage orchard, a model dung beetle display, a number of colouring sheets for kids and a ‘guess the grain’ game where people had to match up a number of different grains grown on farmland with their labels. Kate also led a fantastic talk in the Food and Drink Theatre titled, ‘An Introduction to FarmED’. Everyone was in good spirits and we had lots of brilliant discussions and questions from people stopping by, from dung beetles to farming. A big thank you to all those who attended - we’re already looking forward to next year!
Garden Treasures: What’s been happening down in the kitchen garden?
"But now in September the garden has cooled. The sun warms my back instead of beating on my head and the harvest has dwindled” - Robert Finch
A whole sha-lott of onions...
This week marked the final stage of our onion harvest. The onion skins have turned papery and their shoots yellow, signalling it’s time to pull them from the earth. Folklore suggests checking onion skins for a glimpse of winter’s forecast: thin skins hint at a mild winter, while thick ones predict a harsh, cold season, the result of a dry summer. Our onion skins are somewhere in between, although time will yet tell as they are still drying out.
“Onion skins thin, a mild winter coming in, Onion skin thick and tough, coming winter cold and rough”.
Volunteers braved the elements on Thursday to finish the harvest, leaving the onions and shallots to cure outside before storage. They then weeded around the carrots and beetroot to ensure maximum light and growth. The morning started quiet and misty, until Ian and Hugh emerged from the fog to lend a hand, dressed from head to toe in their waterproofs!
With the summer crops cleared from the polytunnels, the soil has been mulched with compost and sown with autumn and winter replacements. Hardy herbs like thyme, parsley, and coriander have also been left to overwinter. We planted winter lettuce and brassicas in the polytunnels, like mizuna and rocket, using the seed drill.
The stormy weather has seen the team sheltering under trees and last year’s jumpers have made an appearance again as the air gets cooler.
Raking the beds to prep for winter planting
Ideas for garden-inspired dishes this month include apple and sultana crumble, courgette chutney, tomato and basil soup, aubergine and lentil stew, tomato and carrot salad, and cinnamon-baked apples. To welcome autumn and honour the month of September, you might fill your table with yellow, orange, and red candles, autumn leaves, bowls of homegrown tomatoes or acorns, and a jar of late summer flowers.
