The last few mornings have been wet and rainy, coating the trees and the apples in small cool droplets that work there way up your sleeve and drop into your eyes as you pick the upper branches. It has also been much cooler, making me grateful for long sleeves, dry shoes and the morning cup of coffee I take out into the orchard with me. It certainly feels like fall has come to stay and every day I see more and more maples with tinted tips.
We have moved into the world of Macs, some tastier than others, but all soft easily bruised. The rain only exacerbates these traits making the apples ever so easy to blemish. McIntosh are otherwise very enjoyable to pick. They come off the tree with only a small flick of the wrist and many of them are very sizable, almost reaching the proportions of a Cortland. Although the days have started out cool and wet the sun almost always shows it's face by the afternoon.
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| Elaina donning her rain gear on a rainy apple morning |
The forecast is for more rain and more Macs as we move into mid-September and closer to the autumnal equinox. It feels wonderful to be picking in the cool air upon which rides the nostalgia that makes this my favorite season. I am cool damp and content.
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| The morning cup of coffee |
The last few mornings have been wet and rainy, coating the trees and the apples in small cool droplets that work there way up your sleeve and drop into your eyes as you pick the upper branches. It has also been much cooler, making me grateful for long sleeves, dry shoes and the morning cup of coffee I take out into the orchard with me. It certainly feels like fall has come to stay and every day I see more and more maples with tinted tips. 
It certainly feels as though we have abruptly turned a corner after the heat waves of August. And, not a moment too soon.
ReplyDeleteChris, I had growers here in Massachusetts predicting an exceptionally early harvest with, say, McIntosh being ready by mid-August. We did have a very warm spring and many fruit trees blossomed early. But, in your view, are we ahead of schedule?
My own sense is that if we are it is not by a whole lot.
Thanks for the photos!