Early September

I picked the last of the peaches from the old tree yesterday. The wooden props and straps holding the limbs and trunk together remain. We are debating whether to remove all the supports and see how it weathers the winter. The tree is 16 years old. Like a family pet we tend to it in its old age, loathe to let it go.

This is a year of tomato riches. Trays of tomatoes clutter our kitchen counter with more ripening on the vine. While I type this post, a huge pot of chopped tomatoes with minced garlic and a bit of salt simmers on the stove, to be savored on a mid-winter snowy evening. For best flavor I've taken to using a mix of tomato varieties--paste tomatoes, red slicers, large orange ones--whatever is on hand. I'm wishing for a late frost to extend the tomato season deep into autumn.

Insect sounds and chipmunk chatter dominate the natural soundscape during these early days of September. Birds have mostly gone quiet. The resident birds remain busy: woodpeckers tap trees in search of insects and chickadees busily search for seeds. Squirrels are active harvesting acorns in the tree tops of oaks. Sometimes they take a few bites before letting them drop to the ground. Occasionally an acorn hits me on the head. The acorn crop seems to be modest this year -- not small and not huge.

The tail end of Hurricane Isaac is dropping some rain here this week. The timing was good, the garden needed a drink. The rain has stirred the tree frogs and spring peepers. I hear them half-heartedly trilling and peeping.

There is still much to do in the garden, although even the weeds have waned. It's time to plant the spinach and more cilantro. And harvest more tomatoes, along with beans and okra. And what to do with all the tomatillos. I smell the tomatoes simmering and its time to stir the pot.