I hear the wild bee wind his horn,

The bird swings on the ripened wheat

The long green lances of the corn

Are tilting in the winds of morn,

The locust shrills his song of heat. – John Greenleaf Whittier

The Phases of the Mulberry Pie

Moon

and the Raspberry Pie Moon

The Mulberry Pie Moon:

Second Quarter: July 2

Full Moon: July 11

Final Quarter: July 17

The Raspberry Pie Moon:

New: July 24

The Time of Aphelion and the

Longest Days

The sun reached its highest position in the sky, a declination of 23 degrees - 26 minutes, on June 19. It remained at that height through June 23, and on the following day it began to fall a fraction of a degree every 24 hours. The effect was not measurable on sunrise/sunset charts until the 26th when the night grew by a minute for the first time since the middle of December.

Since that late-June change, sunset has remained steady at about 8:10. This week, however, sunset finally gives way and loses its first minute since Dec. 2. Sunrise became three minutes later in the last days of June, and loses another five minutes this week.

In the middle of those reversals in the fortunes of summer, the first days of July bring aphelion, the point at which the Earth is about 153 million kilometers (its greatest distance) from the sun. Aphelion occurs almost exactly six months from perihelion, Earth’s position closest to the sun (about 148 million kilometers). The first week of July is the reverse of the first week of the new year, and as the ripening of Deep Summer intensifies, the other side of time begins its passage to winter.

The sky of aphelion reflects this parallel universe of circular time. At noon, the stars over the United States are the stars of perihelion midnight: Orion due south, the Pleiades overhead. On the clearest July afternoons, January’s Sirius is visible in the southeast. The Big Dipper lies in the northeast, Cepheus in the northwest. Leo is rising. Pegasus is setting.

On the other hand, this week’s night sky is the day sky of Middle Winter. The teapot-like star formation of Libra lies in the south, followed by Scorpius and its red center, Antares. Sagittarius, the Archer, follows the Scorpion in the southeast. Above the Archer, the Milky Way sweeps up toward Cassiopeia in the north.

July Phenology

When the foliage of multiflora roses is yellowing, then poisonous white snakeroot is budding in and around the woodlots. When wild grapes ripen, then the dry onion harvest begins.

When the green fruit of the Osage orange is big and fat enough to come down in thunderstorm winds, then swallows congregate on the high wires, resting on their way south.

When Joe Pye weed sends out its purple flowers in the wetlands, then farmers are preparing for August seeding of alfalfa, smooth brome grass, orchard grass, tall fescue, red clover and timothy.

When late crickets start to chant, then a few Judas maples produce red and orange foliage, telling farmers to finish the cutting of winter grains.

When seedpods are fully formed on the trumpet creepers and green berries on the poison ivy, and when white vervain blossoms reach the end of their spikes, then katydids start shouting “katy-did” after dark.

When ragweed comes into bloom, then a few cottonwoods are turning pale with age.

When black walnut leaves start to fall, then Deep Summer is coming to an end, blue-winged teal and meadowlarks have begun their southward migration, and pokeweed berries darken.

Estimated Pollen Count

(On a scale of 0-700 grains per cubic meter)

Most of the pollen in the air this month continues to come from grasses.

July 10: 15

July 20: 20

July 25: 25

July 30: 35

Estimated Mold Count

(On a scale of 0-7,000 grains per cubic meter)

Average mold counts for this month increase as heat intensifies; they then decline slightly as the days grow shorter.

July 10: 3,400

July 20: 5,600

July 25: 5,400

July 30: 4,000

Natural Calendar

Timothy is bearded with seeds, and rose of Sharon comes into bloom. Autumn’s bird migrations begin as the rough-winged swallow flies south. The summer apple harvest, wheat harvest and the summer potato harvest are all underway throughout the country. Almost all the lilies are in bloom. The bright yellow primroses and spring daisies are gone. The shade-loving cohosh has its berries. The Corn Tassel Rains are gathering to the west, and days suitable for field and garden work often drop to two and a half or three out of seven. Sirius, the Dog Star lies centered in the southern sky at noon.

Purple Loosestrife Season, Queen Anne’s Lace Season, Purple Coneflower Season, Wild Petunia Season, Bouncing Bets Season, Blue Dayflower Season, Sow Thistle Season, White Vervain Season, Dogbane Season, Black-Eyed Susan Season, Leatherflower Season, Germander Season, Pokeweed Season, St. John’s Wort Season, Teasel Season and Wild Lettuce Season dominate the fields. In the shade of the canopy, July is the time of Wood Mint Season, Wood Nettle Season, Leafcup Season, Touch-Me-Not Season, Lopseed Season and Avens Season.

Almanack Literature

It’s Got Me!

By Charlotte Eikenbery

“A relative of mine,” recalls Charlotte, “took her small brother to the outhouse. She helped him sit on the seat, then waited outside for him to finish.

“Lo and behold, he started yelling and crying at the top of his voice, ‘It’s got me! It’s got me! Get me out of here!’

“She rushed inside and tried to lift him off the seat, but couldn’t as he was hurting.

“She then ran into the house and called to her mother: ‘Come quick and help me get him off the toilet seat!’

“They both ran to the outhouse while the brother was still crying and yelling: ‘It’s got me! It’s got me! Get me out of here!’

“His sister went into the outhouse to soothe her brother, and the mother went to the back of the outhouse and discovered that a chicken was under the toilet seat and had hold of the brother’s underside. His mother really whammed the chicken until it let loose.

“The incident scared the mother and the sister as much as the small brother.”

Copyright 2025: Bill Felker