“Autumn is the mellower season, and what we lose in flowers we more than gain in fruits.” ~ Samuel Butler
Autumn is knocking on our door here in the northeast United States. Leaves are changing subtly, and the grasses are fading from green to yellow. Autumn flowers are blooming big. Stands of goldenrod can be seen on roadsides and in my meadow. Helianthus is adding to the yellow theme with rudbeckias and some asters just starting. And roses return to give us one more blast of their fragrant petals.
But with all these wonderful colorful blooms still abounding in my garden, I am drawn to something else entirely. Many of the bushes and trees are putting on their fruit like the Coralberry above. Those that had summer berries have been stripped by the birds as they readied themselves to head for their winter homes.
And the summer flowers that have faded have continued to feed the birds that are year round residents. The finches especially devour any seeds they can find so I leave the seed heads for them. There will be more seeds as autumn continues, and these will be a wonderful treat in winter for those birds that remain, and in spring for birds looking for a meal upon their return.
And of course the veg garden is offering up its bounty. The summer garden is ripening. The tomatoes are weighing down the plants. Cukes continue to sport wondrous fruit ready for pickling. Okra, peppers and eggplant show no signs of stopping. And of course if you planted cooler veggies in later summer, you will have a continued salad bowl right through the first snows.
Counted among these fruits of autumn are the bees who seem to live on flowers every waking moment, and fill their pockets with yellow dusty pollen. And the fungi pop up, as the cool fall rains turn the hard brown earth to a deep rich chocolate hue.
For me there is no greater joy than the fruits of autumn. The fruits of our labor, and Nature’s labor together.
Please join me in celebrating autumn in the Northern hemisphere as I show you my garden fruits from this glorious season:
I trust in nature for the stable laws of beauty and utility. Spring shall plant and autumn garner to the end of time. ~Robert Browning
….autumn–that season of peculiar and inexhaustible influence on the mind of taste and tenderness–that season which has drawn from every poet worthy of being read some attempt at description, or some lines of feeling.” ~ Jane Austen, Persuasion
So how are you celebrating the change of season where you are? Do you look forward to the fruits of your labors in the garden as they reveal themselves in the glory of fall?
If you want to join in the celebration, check out the Come Join Us section below with all the details of how to participate in this meme.
Autumn Mantra:
“It so happens that a capacity for delayed gratification is correlated with intelligence and attainment in life.” ~Paul Martin, Counting Sheep
I am feeling a need for patience in my life right about now. I know that we live in a world where we want instant results, and have lost the ability to wait. To know that nature, like the Universe will give us what we need in due time is an important lesson I am still learning. And there is no better place to look for this than in the autumn garden. I hope it will be a slow journey as I take time to enjoy my fall garden.
Come Join Us:
Seasonal Celebrations is a time for marking the change of seasons and what is happening in your part of the world during this time. I hope you will join in by creating a post telling us how you celebrate this time of year whether summer or winter or something else. Share your traditions, holidays, gardens and celebrations in pictures, poetry or words starting September 1st.
And it seems so appropriate to collaborate with Beth and her Lessons Learned meme. What lessons have you learned this past season of summer here in the North and winter in the South. Then tell us about your wishes, desires and dreams for this new season.The rules are simple. Just create a post that talks about lessons learned 
and/or seasonal celebrations. If you are joining in for both memes please leave a comment on both our blog posts. Or if you are choosing to join only one meme, leave a comment on that blog post. Make sure to include a link with your comment.
Beth and I will do a summary post of our respective memes on the equinox (the 22nd of September). And we will keep those posts linked on a page on our blog. Your post should be linked in the weekend before the equinox to give us enough time to include your post in our summary. And if you link in a bit late, never fear we will include it on the special blog page (which I still have to create). The badges here can be used in your post. So won’t you join in the celebration!!
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Next up on the blog: I hope you will join in the meme as August wanes. Monday, I will do a wrap up of my August garden. I also have a blogging anniversary on the 13th with a special post.
I hope you will join me for my posts once a month at Beautiful Wildlife Garden. See my most current post now. Most recent post is up.
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