dark furrow
a quiet almanac of soil and sky
night, the sixteenth of july
midsummer
the full weight of summer.
everything is ripe or ripening or done.
thunder in the westthe corn stands perfectly stillwaiting for the rain
sky
warm and loud with insects. sleep with the windows open or don't sleep.
- waxing crescent, 5% lit
- sunrise 6:11 am · sunset 8:30 pm
- 14h 19m of daylight (-1.2 minutes from yesterday)
- civil dusk 8:59 pm · sailor's dark 9:35 pm · true dark 10:15 pm
the moon is dark. this is a time for rest and planning. prepare beds, amend soil, but do not plant. the old farmers said nothing wants to start in the dark.
the milky way runs through it, visible on clear dark nights away from town
a cloudburst. not just rain but the whole sky falling at once. half an inch in ten minutes. the ditches fill, the creek jumps its bank, and then it stops. the sun comes out like nothing happened.
garden
in the ground now
- let some herbs bolt and flower for the bees
- the garden is giving now, keep up with it or it spoils
- second planting of beans if you have the space
- harvest in the morning before the heat sets in
this week
- order garlic for fall planting now. the good varieties sell out early.
- take notes on what worked and what failed. your memory will lie to you by winter.
good neighbors
- basil started again from cuttings, the second crop of the year is the strongest for pesto
- nasturtium tumbling between the squash hills, the bugs go to it and not the fruit
- a few sunflowers at the north end of the bed, where the shade falls on no one important
bad neighbors
- another round of squash where the first one suffered, the bug eggs are already waiting
- never put fall brassicas where the spring brassicas stood, the cabbage worms remember the place
- fennel anywhere near the new bean rows, the seedlings will sulk all the way to fall
kitchen
in season
- cold soups, gazpacho, things from the fridge
- eat outside if there is a breeze
- watermelon with salt, the oldest summer trick
- can or freeze what you cannot eat, winter will want it
tonight
- it is too hot to cook, so don't
putting up
- watermelon rind makes a sweet pickle. the south figured this out a long time ago. nothing wasted.
- the first figs come in. jam them, dry them, or bake them into the lid of a tart.
foraging
- chanterelle mushrooms after summer rains, golden in the hardwood leaf litter.
- sumac berries, the red fuzzy clusters. steep in cold water for a drink like pink lemonade.
- wild plums, small and tart, good for jam and nothing else.
- jewelweed, the orange-flowered plant near creeks. crush the stem for poison ivy relief.
midsummer foraging is abundance and sweat. bring a bucket and water. the blackberries alone will keep you busy for weeks.
folklore
the buck moon, the thunder moon. the dog days begin when sirius rises with the sun. the old farmers blamed the star for the heat. it is not the star. but the name stuck.
calendula flowers, steeped in oil for weeks. makes a healing salve for cracked hands and dry skin. midsummer medicine is first aid. the garden and the woods are handing out scratches, bites, heat, and rashes. have your remedies ready.
dragonflies over the garden, eating hundreds of mosquitoes a day. allies.