June 28-July 4, 2010
While seeking the secrets of nature I have watched the salutary effects of stillness and peace on human hearts and minds. I have seen the overpowering beauty of dawns and sunsets reach into troubled breasts and heal hurts that were thought beyond medicine and philosophy.
-Sam Campbell

Lunar phase and lore

The Cherry Pie Moon wanes throughout the period, entering its final quarter on July 4 at 5:13 p.m. Rising in the middle of the night and setting in the afternoon, the moon will move overhead before sunrise, making the predawn hours the most favorable lunar time for catching fish.

The approach of the July 6 cool front should intensify finny hunger. Humans may be especially attracted by powdered doughnuts and chocolate bars at that time.

The dark moon of late June is favorable for detasseling corn, harvesting winter wheat, completing the first cut of alfalfa and beginning the second cut. This moon is also right for weeding and mulching, as well as for insect hunting. And don’t forget to shear the scrotum of your rams before the Dog Days of July engulf the country.

Since lunar influence weakens throughout the week, public service employees and health care workers should see a decline in problems in their areas. Independence Day will still pose challenges, but not nearly as many as would occur if the moon were full on July 4.

Forty minutes are subtracted from the day’s length this month: Close to 20 from each the morning and evening. On the first of the month, most of the area has close to 15 hours of daylight. By August, only 14 hours, 20 minutes are left.

Aphelion, the sun’s position farthest from Earth, occurs on July 6 at 11 a.m. By the end of the month, the sun will be a quarter of the way between summer solstice and autumn equinox.

Weather patterns

Tornadoes, hurricanes, floods or prolonged periods of soggy pasture are most likely to occur within the weather windows of July 3-7 and July 21-23. Full moon on July 25 increases the chance of tornadoes in the Midwest and the landing of a hurricane in the Gulf region.

In most years, the warmest days of the month are July 8-10, 16-21, 25-26 and 28. There are usually between three and five days each week suitable for fieldwork in July. The driest days, those with less than a 20 percent chance of rain, are July 6, 16-18. The sunniest days are July 7, 10, 16-18 and 29.

Daybook

June 28: Since the moon may exert less influence on ocean tides and on human and animal behavior when it comes into its second and fourth quarters, it might make more sense to transport your animals or perform routine maintenance on your livestock on or about July 4 and 18.

June 29: June’s berries are disappearing: black raspberries decline quickly in warmer years and the best mulberries have always fallen by now. But July’s wild cherries are ripening, and elderberries are setting fruit.

Coneflowers, white vervain, oxeye, horseweed, germander, teasel and wild lettuce blossom in the fields; tall bellflowers open in the woods. Thimble plants set thimbles. Thistledown lies across the pastures in the windless afternoons.

June 30: The potato and summer apple harvests get under way under the auspices of thistledown. The oats crop ripens, and the first tier of soybeans bloom. The number of vegetable varieties increases at farmers’ markets, and locally grown sweet corn appears on roadside stands throughout the area.

July 1: Dig your garlic before the heads break apart, Plan to harvest grain and cut hay before the Corn Tassel Rains (July 2-7). Mulch in preparation of Dog Day heat and peak weed season.
Add a special feed mix for your male livestock, which could improve their fertility in late summer and early fall. Put in trees, shrubs, fall beets and turnips before new moon (July 11).

July 2: When the first black walnuts start to fall, renovate strawberry beds, cutting off tops above the crown, then fertilize. Plant the latest sweet corn of the year as soon as possible. Plan ahead to set in crops that will bear their fruit above the ground as the moon is waxing between July 11-24.

In the garden, plant hollyhock, sweet William and forget-me-not seeds for next year’s blossoms. Columbines and delphiniums for 2011 can also be sown during this period.

July 3: Like the final front of June, the July 6 weather system is associated with the rain and heat. Thunderstorms and overcast skies precede this front, often spoiling Independence Day fireworks, sometimes bringing hail.

July 4: The moon enters its final quarter today, its weakest position of the month. Today is good for fireworks and cookouts; it is also favorable for moving livestock to the fair or market, having surgery or taking your kids to the zoo.

Countdown to late summer

The blooming of Shasta daisies, rose of Sharon and garden phlox mark the first week of middle summer (this week) and if the weather is hot, cicadas will begin to call. By the second week of middle summer, farmers have cut almost all the wheat, field corn is always tasseling and thistledown is spreading across the countryside.

Robins end their predawn chorus in the third week of middle summer as katydids start to sing and golden wingstem flowers in the field.

Ripening blackberries, the arrival of migrating monarch butterflies, the flocking of starlings, the start of cricket song and elderberries darkening for wine mark the fourth week of middle summer.

Living with the seasons

Middle summer is the time to check your livestock (and pets) for internal parasites (worms) and the external ones, too. And heat could be sapping the energy of your bulls, rams and bucks. Order seed for green manure production for autumn or early spring. If you have time, build a few cold frames to extend the season another month.

If you are planning to sell your house or homestead next spring, order some flowering spring bulbs. Flowers improve the appearance of your property and give it a more prosperous look. They are good if you stay, good if you go.