“There is no season when such pleasant and sunny spots may be lighted on,
and produce so pleasant an effect on the feelings, as now in October”
Nathaniel Hawthorn (1804-1864)
Mid-Atlantic Weather Watch: Fair and cool (1,2,3,4,5,6,7) with showers and warmer (8,9). STORMS (10,11,12) turning fair and mild (13,14,15,16,17,18,19). Showers and warm (20,21) returning to fair and mild temperatures (22,23,24,25,26,27,28); showers end the month (29,30,31).
Full Moon: The Full Moon in October will occur on October 18th and is the Hunter’s Moon for 2013. The Cree Indian Tribe called it the Moon Of Falling Leaves because so many trees lose the last of their leaves in October. It has also been known as Yellow Leaf Moon because of all of the bright foliage yet to fall while many tribes called it the Big Feast Moon
because of the bountiful harvests and Fall Celebrations going on at this time.
Holidays: Columbus Day falls on Monday, October 14th and United Nations Day is celebrated on Thursday, October 24th. The children’s most anticipated holiday (next to Christmas, of course!) is Halloween which falls on Thursday, October 31st. Show good safety sense and schedule ‘Trick or Treat’ activities early and before dusk for the young ones and caution
older children to carry flashlights and wear reflective clothing (or costumes!) after dark. Never allow any ‘treats’ to be eaten until after a thorough examination by parents!
The Garden: Start raking those leaves now! Be sure to give your lawn a good raking so that the fallen leaves won’t block vital Fall sunlight to the lawn. Shred those leaves and use them to ‘bed down’ shrubs and plants or include (along with any lawn clippings) to the compost heap. Remove all dead or dying plants and add those to the pile as well.
Check your flower and vegetable garden soil’s pH levels. If too acidic, apply lime. Do not fertilize any trees. Fertilizing will encourage new growth when actually, trees need to retreat into a resting phase and prepare for the colder winter months ahead. One last tip: mix 1 can of cola (not diet), 1 cup of dish soap, and ¼ cup of ammonia and add to 20-gallon
sprayer and fill to top. Saturate the layer of mulch (all those shredded leaves!) or whatever’s left on top of your vegetable garden’s soil and then say, “Good Night” until the next growing season!
J. Grubers' Thought for Today's Living:
