November is upon us. The past month, Mother Nature has pulled out her paintbox, coloring the trees and mountains in vibrant colors. As the winds pick up, the colorful leaves twirl down in their last dance of the season, to cover the ground with their brilliance. In mini swirling tornados, the leaves fly, as the last gasp of warm weather moves on until next year.
It is sad, to see the plants and trees die off, but we all know they will be back again in the spring. The little Maple helicopter polynoses or whirligigs as we used to call them, join the acorns, walnuts, redbud seed pods, and so many others, to lie in wait, for their turn to sprout new life in the spring of next year.
The fallen leaves will nourish the earth they rest on, and give cover to the tiny bugs, caterpillars, and creatures that hide beneath. Our gardens winter over, as the folks (like me) scurry around gathering seeds for their collections, sharing, and winter sowing.
Late October through early December, when the ground is no longer soggy, is the time to plant those tulips. Every year, I plan to do this, maybe this month I actually will! My daffodils will burst out on their own, Can’t wait!
The animals are scurrying around, gathering foodstuffs to fill their storehouses for the winter. Skunks are digging for grubs while the getting is still good. We had one tunneling into one of the chicken coops, looking for spilled feed. If it was looking for eggs, he mistakenly tunneled into the slacker coop, so no eggs for him (or her).
The birds are waiting every morning for me to put out the seed, the crows are in the driveway cleaning up the cracked corn. The groundhogs are still rifling through what remains of my garden.
The occasional squirrel comes out of the woods to get a snack from leftover birdseed.
The hummingbirds have gone, but the bees congregate around the leftover hummingbird syrup, sucking out whatever they can. Since the flowers are pretty much gone, leftover syrup will have to do for them.
The other morning, under my deck, a kestrel was finishing off its breakfast of a luckless mourning dove.
The deer are wearing their winter colored coat, and the fawns have lost most of their spots.
The creatures and plants know nothing of Daylight Savings Time, they just follow their internal clock.
If your birthday is in November, your birthstone is citrine or topaz, and you share the month with other holidays. Veteran’s Day is Saturday, November 11. Election Day is Tuesday, November 7th. Thanksgiving is November 23rd.
Let’s not forget the countdown to Christmas, starting with November 24th’s Black Friday and November 27th Cyber Monday.
Let’s all enjoy the change of the season, as we approach the end of the of the year. Enjoy the family gatherings and give thanks for the abundance we are afforded.
All is well at Mountain Meadows…….
