By Bill Felker Vast overhanging meadow-lands of rain, And drowsy dawns, and noons when golden grain Nods in the sun, and lazy truant boys Drift ever listlessly down the day, Too full of joy to rest, and dreams to play. – James Whitcomb Riley The Moon and the Sun The Fourth Week of Early Summer The Hummingbird Moon entered its second quarter on June 7. It waxes throughout the remainder of the period, became full at 6:52 a.m. on June 14, and reached perigee, its position closest to Earth, at 6:00 p.m. that day. This is a Supermoon (full at perigee). Rising in the afternoon and setting in the morning, this Moon passed overhead in the middle of the night. After full moon on the 14th, the Humming Bird Moon waned throughout the period, and will enter its final quarter on June 20 at 10:11 p.m. Rising in the evening and setting in the morning, this moon shines throughout the night. Weather Trends Through June 19, average temperatures climb their final degrees throughout the nation, reaching their summer peak near solstice. This month’s Supermoon may bring rain, however, leaving cool evenings in its wake. The June 23 high-pressure system is typically cool and dry, and it is often followed by some of the sunniest days of all the year. As the next June front approaches, however, the benign effects of the June 23 system can be expected to give way to thunderstorms. Zeitgebers: Events in Nature that Tell the Time of Year As Early Summer deepens, the days are the longest of the year, and mulberries and black raspberries are sweetest. Milkweed beetles look for milkweed flowers on the longest days; giant cecropia moths emerge. The first monarch butterfly caterpillars eat the carrot tops. This year’s ducklings and goslings are nearly full grown. Damselflies and daddy longlegs are everywhere in brambles along the rivers when mulberries and black raspberries come in. Mosquitoes, chiggers and ticks have reached their summer strength in the deep woods. Long, black cricket hunters hunt crickets in the garden. Two out of three parsnips, angelicas and hemlocks are going to seed. Multiflora roses and Japanese honeysuckles are dropping petals. But wingstem and tall coneflower stalks are 5 feet high, and Virginia creeper is flowering. Canadian thistles and nodding thistles are at their best. Blackberries have set fruit. The very first trumpet vines sport bright red-orange trumpets. The first yuccas and the first great mullein come into bloom. In the Field and Garden As summer heat builds up, watch for screw worm and blow fly eggs in sores or dung locks on your livestock. Timely clipping, shearing and dipping can help keep your animals from these pests as well as from ticks, lice and scab mites. Pick summer blueberries as they darken this month. (Very often berries are fattest at full and new moon). But don’t forget the wild mulberry and black raspberry crops. In the lawn, chinch bugs hatch; be sure to water heavily to counteract their damage. In your trees, look for tent caterpillars. If you have livestock, consider growing dill (to increase milk yields), fennel (for fevers and constipation and all eye ailments), anise (for digestive ailments). Adolescent coyotes are out hunting now. Check fences, have the guard animals in place and bright night lighting. Continue to check your lambs for constipation. Castor oil and milk of magnesia are old standby remedies. Pasture rotation, regular testing and worming are among the very best ways to fight worms in your livestock. Placing raspberries along your hedgerows offers a simple way to offer healthful browsing material for your livestock. The high noon of the year has arrived, marked by the opening of goose molting season and the commencement of corn borer season. When elderberry flowers turn to fruit, dig garlic before the heads break apart. Also take time to clear and reseed the early spring garden area. Barley and honey, mixed with water and simmered for an hour, can soothe inflammations of the throat and stomach, and may reduce coughing in humans as well as in animals. If your animals have been out in the sun for a long period of time, and they are starting to pant and are unsteady on their feet, they could have sunstroke. When yuccas flower, plant the vegetable garden for August and September harvests. Many people now plant turnips and beets for fall harvest and grazing. Mind and Body The S.A.D. Stress Index (which measures the forces thought to be associated with Seasonal Affective Disorder on a scale from 1 to 100) reaches 30 on full moon day, but then falls into the harmless single digits on June 19. It remains at its lowest level of the year throughout the remainder of the month. Almanack Classics “Who Did That?” By Tara S. Reidenbugh We had adopted a German Shepherd named Zac, who had been abused the first five years of his life, so his self-esteem left a lot to be desired – although to look at him and hear him, any human would have been cautious. Zac has since passed, but I still remember the time he followed me into the field along with Tiffy, my Border Collie. The sheep knew they could never have any control over Tiffy, but they sure sensed Zac’s innocence. As soon has he turned his back, two of the ewes ganged up on him and head-butted him in the butt, one and then the next. Zac whirled around barking as if to say, “Who did that?” Of course, I felt bad and had to rescue my big, intimidated Shepherd from the sheep. Send your memory stories to Poor Will, P.O. Box 431, Yellow Springs, OH 45387. Five dollars will be paid to any author whose story appears in this column. ANSWERS TO LAST WEEK’S SCKRAMBLER In order to estimate your SCKRAMBLER IQ, award yourself 15 points for each word unscrambled, adding a 50-point bonus for getting all of them correct. If you find a typo, add another 15 points to your IQ. SSEM MESS SESRTS STRESS SESRIGD DIGRESS XCSSEE EXCESS ESESNIF FINESSE EIRPNCSS PRINCESS SESECR RECESS SSERGSNART TRANSGRESS WDLRNSESEI WILDERNESS SSSHHPDREEE SHEPHERDESS THIS WEEK’S RHYMING SCKRAMBLER OTRS RUCOT SASPPRTO TROPMI RUPPTOR UTRAQ OFRT TTXREO RSROTE RDPETO Copyright 2022 – W. L. Felker |
