Summer Has Left The Mountain

Miss Fay lingered long enough to give us 6.5 inches of much needed rain. The weather headlines have two more storms queued up in the Atlantic. It is not unusual for hurricane remnants to head this way. Hopefully this dry spell is over.

This past week has had some major events that mark a turning point.



Where did the time go? Can it be the end of summer so soon? This notion of a season ending, a definitive, perceivable click of the wheel is still new to me. I have turned back into a blond with the summer sun and the idea of cool, cold and covering back up to morph into a pale mousy brown is not appealing. The glorious colors of fall will wow and lull me into acceptance.



The view from my window where my desk will be will allow me to watch the spinning wheel move incrementally by. I should be able to detect any commotion at the roadside vegetable garden from this view too.



The first of the fall asters are in full swing. I think this is Eurybia divaricata, the White Wood Aster. As is the case in these woods, the look a likes abound. It could be Symphyotrichum pilosum, the Frost Aster.



Ageratina altissima, White Snakeroot is beginning to cover the ridge top garden in waves, a hint of snows to come. The unidentified blue aster will soon follow in equal abundant measure.



The Northern Sea Oats grass, Chasmanthium latifolium planted last fall has done well. It was ignored all spring and summer. Other things were going on.



A sure sign of the end of summer and the main traffic driver to this blog, the one and only Ambrosia artemisiifolia. Folks just love my Ragweed. If your bored, Google "What does Ragweed look like?" See what comes up.



This was on the tip of my tongue, but has slipped away. It will return later.



The Angelica gigas is really putting on a show this year. Many of the biennials wax and wane and move about the meadow, never content to just sit still. Last year there were only a couple of them. With this many in bloom will there be even more next year?



After a good hard rinse the long forgotten dry stacked stone wall was looking particularly fetching today. I think it was saying "I'll be seeing you soon."



Getting actually hot is only contemplated and toyed with up here on the mountain. When the mountains grab the clouds from passing storms, the preferred, more normal cool conditions prevail, a reminder that summer is but a fleeting moment in time.