Observing the subtle signs of autumnThere are tiny hints of autumn in the air as we begin August. The days are getting shorter by a minute each evening and we have now lost 40 minutes of daylight since June 21. We still have plenty of hotties remaining as well as two more weeks of summer’s Dog Days.
Autumn is seven weeks away and we already have several subtle signs that autumn is on the way with dews becoming heavier and lingering longer each morning. The katydids are singing their songs from the mighty oaks and the crickets sing from the front lawn. Strangely enough, both of their songs are about autumn. The song of the katydids seems more urgent while the cricket sounds more carefree even though they are both on the same subject and that subject is autumn is not really that far away. Flowers are producing seed. Summer vegetables are slowing down and birds are a little less active except for crows as they check out the cornfields.
The roses of mid-summer
Mid-summer is here and the roses are still beautiful. They display their color, beauty, and fragrance even in the heat of the Dog Day afternoons. Keep the fading blooms deadheaded to promote the growth of new blooms. Water the base of the roses once a week when no rain is in the forecast. Feed the roses with rose-Tone organic rose food every ten to twelve days. Prune back long canes to improve their appearance. Keep an eye out for rose mites and Japanese beetles and spray to control them.
Saint Lamma’s Day
On the first day of August, we celebrate Saint Lamma’s Day. On his special day, it is said that if it is hot during that week, we will have a winter of white stuff and some ice. We do not have too much faith in the saying of Saint Lamma’s. We definitely know it is going to be hot simply because there are still two more weeks of Dog Days remaining. We do believe we will have plenty of snow and ice but certainly not a whole winter of it.
Do fogs of August relate to snow?
As August begins, we have the advent of the foggy mornings. My Northampton County grandma in the 1950s always rose early and always kept a count of the fogs of August and recorded them. This was before computers, radar and high-tech meteorologists. In winter, she checked her records and the snowfalls and over the winter her records turned about as accurate as many of today’s predictions. Mark Twain once said, “Everyone talks about the wealther, but no one can do anything about it.” My grandma did what she had always done by keeping a record of August fogs. In the 21st century, the eastern North Carolina of Northampton has received some heft snowfalls and i 2018, they enjoyed a 15 inch snowfall. We wonder what my grandma would have thought about that! We do know that in these days, eastern North Carolina is getting more snowfall even in coastal Carolina.
Making an easy cheesy chicken casserole
In the last of the Dog Days of mid-summer, an easy chicken casserole paves the way to a great supper. You will need four chicken breasts, one cup sour cream, one jar Heinz chicken gravy, one can Campbell’s cream of chicken soup, two cups grated Ritz crackers, two beaten eggs, one eight-ounce bag of finely shredded mozzarella cheese, and one teaspoon McCormick poultry seasoning. Boil chicken until tender, de-bone and cut into small chunks. spread in a 13x9x2 inch baking dish or pan. Add sour cream, cream of chicken soup, gravy, crushed Ritz crackers (reserve enough to spread over the top), on pack of mozzarella cheese, two beaten eggs, one teaspoon poultry seasoning. Mix all together and mix with the chicken chunks. Bake at 400 degrees until thick and bubbly. Add the grated Ritz crackers and a stick of light margarine and spread over the top of the casserole. Lightly broil until light brown on top.
The heat of August makes fine compost
The Dog Day heat is still with us and adds extra heat to the compost pile or bin. The stalk vines and other residue from the garden and ran through the mower to break them down plus the nitrogen rich clippings from the lawn add heat to the compost. A few handfuls of Plant-Tone organic vegetable food add extra heat plus the Dog Day heat of the August afternoon sun.
Dog Day afternoon crow calls
The growing population of crows celebrate Dog Day afternoons with serenades of calls during the heat of the Dog Days. Crows are now a daily sight and sound. There are plenty of nests nearby. They have an abundant supply of roadkill from U.S. Highway 52 and plenty of acres of cornfields nearby. When crows fly overhead and caw three times, it is a signal that they know you are nearby. Some mornings, especially in August, we see several of them visiting the birdbath. Crows seem to be very private and keep their distance from other birds, but seem to be less afraid of people than they used to be.
Dog Days heat agrees with the Christmas cactus
The cactus have been on the front porch since mid-May and enjoy their semi-sunny location near the back area of the front porch. Too much summer sun will cause foliage on the cactus to turn reddish in color. Keeping them out of the direct sunlight will solve this problem. The cactus need a drink of water once or twice a week and fed once a month with Flower-Tone organic flower food. A great indicator that cactus are thriving is when they cascade over their containers.
Hoe hoe hoedown
“Morning Walk.” “I walked around the block three times this morning, then I threw it in the toy box.”
“Family Tree.” A teacher asked her Sunday School class to write a letter on, “Why I love God.” Next Sunday, she received a lot of answers. The one she liked best was, “I don’t know, but I guess it just runs in the family.”
My church welcomes many denominations, but mainly tens and twenties!
The almanac for August
On Aug. 1, we celebrated Saint Lamma’s Day. There will be a new moon in the western sky on Sunday, Aug. 4. The moon will reach its first quarter on Monday, Aug. 12. Dog Days of 2024 will come to an end on Sunday, Aug. 11. The full moon of August will occur on Monday, Aug. 19. The name of this moon will be “Full Sturgeon Moon.” This full moon has other names such as “Black Cherry Moon” and “Flying Up Moon.” The moon reaches its last quarter on Monday, Aug. 26.
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