We harvested the last of this year’s grapes yesterday—three large bowls of fruit. We had been enjoying our grapes for the last three weeks. But with evening temperatures dropping, it was time to finish. These are entirely organic, no pesticides are used to protect them. We lose a few fruit to insects, more to birds, but plenty are left for us. Click on the image for a larger view.
Tag Archives: Fall in Maine
Thanksgiving Dinner
Naomi and I don’t eat meat. For Thanksgivings we made a stuffed kabocha. Kabocha is a well known squash in Japan. You can eat the cooked flesh by itself or stuff the entire fruit. For the stuffing, we used ingredients from our garden: plantain, spiderwort, day lilies, goutweed, and bush beans. We added some vegetarian sausage, mushrooms, croutons, and cheese. (This would be good for other holidays, feasts, or an everyday meal.) Click on the image for a larger view.
Milkweed
The seed pods on our milkweed are bursting open. Click on the image for a larger view.
Sudden Change
The foliage season can seem very brief in Maine. Last week, there was still a significant number of trees with leaves. Now, the forest is bare with only the conifers retaining any color. Fortunately, the temperatures are still relatively mild and snow will hold off until December. Click on the image for a larger view.
Foggy Morning
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Season’s End
We are moving toward winter. It did not seem that long ago that our field was green and full of life. The golden rod is now dry and brown. Click on the image for a larger view.
Late Autumn 2015
Beach, which never drop their leaves for winter, and oak are the last of the trees with foliage in our forest. Click on the image for a larger view.
Lost Varieties—Apples of Maine
Throughout Maine are lost varieties of apples growing in old fields. While our supermarkets limit our choice, usually red, yellow, and green, thousands of apple varieties have been cultivated. Some have been saved in seed banks and specialty orchards, but many have been lost to time and memory—it can be hard to identify an apple by appearance.
We have one lost variety on our land. It fruits biennially and produces large, round apples. The flesh is white and very light; despite the size, they do not weight that much. It is not a sweet apple, but neither does it have a sharpness of a Granny Smith. Lemony would be a good description. If you cook it, it takes on a pleasant sweetness, but it does not retain its shape. We eat this raw or make apple sauce for itself or as pie filler. Click on the image for a larger view.
Trees, Wind, and Light
The foliage is changing quickly in our forest. Click on the image for a larger view.
Red Maple Spectrum
Inspired by my maple leaves, this images represents the spectrum of the Red Maple tree. These colors can be present at one time throughout the foliage. Click on the image for a larger view.
