Days in the 90s will disappear very soon

Although we talk so much about coincidence we do not really believe in it. In our heart of hearts we think better of the universe, we are secretly convinced that it is not a slipshod, haphazard affair, that everything in it has meaning. — J. B. Priestly

The Moon: The Jumping Jumpseed Moon becomes completely full on September 24 at 9:52 p.m. Rising late in the afternoon and setting after midnight, this fat, gibbous Moon passes overhead in the middle of the night.

The Sun: Autumn equinox occurs (and the Sun enters its Middle Autumn sign of Libra) at 8:01 p.m. on September 22. Within several days of that moment, the night is about 12 hours long almost everywhere in the continental United States.

The Planets: Venus slowly fades away in the far west as September comes to a close, and Jupiter replaces her as the most prominent Evening Star, low on the horizon after sundown. These are the last evenings this year during which you can see both Jupiter and Venus close together in the west.

The Stars: As September wanes, the Milky Way moves across the center of the sky at bedtime, Cepheus (shaped a little like a house) comes directly overhead, and the Big Dipper hugs the northern horizon. Summer’s familiar constellation, Sagittarius, has now moved to the far southwest. The less distinctive star group of Capricorn has taken its place due south, followed by gangly Aquarius.

The Shooting Stars:

No major meteor showers occur this week.

Weather Trends: Equinox parallels a drop in heat as well as in averages. Days in the 90s disappear after September 22, and even 80s will be gone in only three weeks. The chances of an afternoon in the 50s or 60s this week double over those odds last week - to 40 percent. The season of light frosts deepens: September 24 and 27 even carry a 20 percent chance of a mild freeze - the greatest chance since May 10. On September 23 and 26, chances of a high below 70 degrees are better than 50 percent, the first time that has happened since May 4.

The Natural Calendar: In the northern half of the United States, the first tier of trees, including the ashes, cottonwoods, box elders, hickories and locusts, turns quickly after equinox. Poison ivy, sumac and Virginia creeper color the fencerows red and gold. Aster blossoms slowly start to disappear; their departure parallels leaf fall, the end of the insect season, the end of the spider web season and an acceleration in bird migration. Crab apples are thinning. Milkweed pods burst.

Fish, Insects, Livestock and Birds: Fish and game become more active as the Moon moves overhead in the evenings, especially as the cold fronts of September 20, 24 and 29 approach. Monarch and swallowtail butterflies often become more numerous and visit the last flowers in the afternoon sun.

After equinox, some poultry owners turn on a low-wattage light bulb in the chicken house in order to counter the effects of the shortening days on egg production. Since the best market for fresh eggs occurs between November 1 and the end of February, you may wish to experiment with trying to keep your hens laying.

In the Field and Garden: Now as the Moon wanes, put in spring bulbs, divide perennials, shrubs and trees. The sugar beet, pear, cabbage and cauliflower harvests commence near this date in the Great Lakes region. In Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington State, the cranberry harvest begins, berries darkening in the cooler weather.

The first winter wheat is planted in northern counties as the season of killing frosts begins. Tobacco harvest is just about complete as the day’s length falls below twelve hours. Seventy percent of silage corn is typically cut, 10 percent of corn for grain, 15 percent of the soybeans. Fall apples and grapes are half picked.

Marketing Notes: September 23 – 25,: Harvest Moon Festival: This festival, also called Chuseok, is often observed by Korean Americans and others of Asian descent.

The Almanack Horoscope: Seasonal stress will continue to be low during the first part of this week. Even though the average amount of cloud cover per day has increased to a third of its November potency and the day’s length keeps on shortening, the weather is usually pleasant, and the Moon is early in its second quarter. As Full Moon approaches, however, your body and mind, your children and your animals may begin to give you trouble. If you work in law enforcement or health care, expect even more trouble on Full Moon day itself.

Journal

Driving toward the Ohio River: I head south into a thunderstorm. The soybeans are half yellow, and the corn is old. Most black walnut trees are bare, fruit exposed and swinging in the rain. Small white asters and goldenrod are in full bloom; chicory is still open.

The breeze is steady but gentle from the southwest, leaving intact the haze across the valley. Swallows are still diving. Buzzards circle. Poplars are weathered, the raindrops darken the remaining green, brighten the patches of yellow on the Osage. Queen Anne’s lace is so thick in the fields that it looks like cotton. I pass boneset seeding in the creek, and hundreds of yards of thistles, down matted to their stems.

Milkweed pods are getting hard and pale. White snakeroot keeps its flowers, as do the Jerusalem artichoke and wingstem, remnants of August. Tobacco is hanging in a few barns. I stop and walk in the light rain through spotted touch-me-nots and small white asters. Steady chanting of crickets. Smartweed at my feet, pink and white. Smell of wood smoke, and wet leaves, river mud, and bittersweet old pollen, old wildflowers and hay.

Sycamores are turning; two of their leaves fell right in front of me. Tattered blue dayflowers beside me. Summer spider webs almost gone. The purple loosestrife has ended its flower cycle along the water. The huge pink mallows have died, heads black, leaves decaying, stems dark. Wild cucumbers have formed, prickly like cacti. Beggarticks, heal all, mistflower and heart-leafed asters are open. Toward evening, I park by the water and listen to crows in the trees across the valley. Poor Will’s Almanack and Horoscope for 2019 is now available; order on Amazon. com.