Sept. 26-Oct. 2, 2011

All about us, there was marked change. Mornings were cooler and crisper than before. The ever-lengthening shapes of afternoon shadows seemed drawn more irresistibly into the night. Fields were rough and tweedy, as though an old brown woolen jacket had been thrown over them to ward off the chill …

-Vincent G. Dethier

Lunar phase and lore

The Leafturn Moon, new on Sept. 27 at 6:09 a.m., waxes throughout the week, entering its second quarter at 10:15 p.m. Oct. 3. Rising in the morning and setting well after dark, this moon moves overhead in the afternoon.

Fishing and scouting for game are both favored with the moon above you, making the period between lunch and supper the best lunar time of day for those activities this week. All creatures should be more active and feed more heavily in the afternoon, as the barometer falls in advance of the Oct. 2 and 4 weather systems.

Entering into Virgo on Sept. 26, Libra on Sept. 27, Scorpio on Sept. 29, Sagittarius on Oct. 1 and Capricorn on Oct. 3, the dark, waxing moon favors the planting of garlic and spring bulbs, and the transplanting of perennials throughout the period, especially in Scorpio at the end of this week and early next week in Capricorn.

Venus lies in Libra, lost from view throughout the month; Mars in Cancer comes up after midnight and is nearly overhead by sunrise. Jupiter in Aries still dominates the east after sunset, leading Orion into the center of the sky by the middle of the night. Saturn in Virgo is visible right along the eastern horizon at dawn.

Weather patterns

Light frost strikes 10-20 percent of all the nights next week, with Oct. 3 most likely to bring a damaging freeze in the 20s (a 5 percent chance). Highs in the 80s occur on approximately 10 percent of the days, and 70s can be expected 30 percent of the time.

Moderate 60s dominate half the afternoons, while colder 40s and 50s come 15-20 percent of the time. The likelihood for colder weather almost always increases after Oct. 4, after which day the chances for highs only in the 50s swell from an average of 15 percent to 30.

Rain falls about one day in three. Historically, the driest days are Oct. 3, 6 and 7, and the wettest days are Oct. 1 and 4. Skies are clear to partly cloudy 70 percent of the time. The sunniest days are typically Oct. 3 and 6, when clouds are almost completely absent 80 percent of the time.

The October outlook

Cold fronts typically cross the Mississippi River on about the following dates: Oct. 2, 7, 13, 17, 23 and 30. As in September, the period between Oct. 19-25 is the time most likely to bring serious storms or damaging frost. Expect snow in the northern tier of states with any of these weather systems.

Full moon on Oct. 11 and new moon on Oct. 26 increase the likelihood of a hurricane coming ashore in the Gulf or a strong frost-bearing cold wave moving across the Plains around those dates.

Daybook

Sept. 26: In Wisconsin, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon and Washington, the cranberry harvest has begun as berries darken in the cooler weather.

Sept. 27: The Leafturn Moon is new today, and that dark moon favors vaccinations and general livestock care. Changes in the season bring weather extremes as well as stress, so you will be managing routine health needs at the most important time of the year. The waxing moon will also favor all kinds of planting and transplanting.

Sept. 28: The new moon brings excellent landscaping conditions, favorable for the setting out of shrubs and young trees, for dividing and transplanting perennials, for setting out flowering mums, as well as for putting in a few lettuce and radish seeds for late greens. This is also an excellent lunar week for soybean and corn harvests, and for picking grapes and fall apples.

Sept. 29: As the corn harvest is completed, vaccinate for entero-toxemia the lambs you let run in the cornfields. Select breeding bucks and rams for females to be bred in November.

Sept. 30: When milkweed pods open, peak leaf coloration starts in northern New England. In the Mid-Atlantic States, the canopy is visibly thinning.

Oct. 1: When you see the fruits of the ginkgo tree turning pink, then look for next year’s skunk cabbage coming up in the swamp and the knuckles of next year’s rhubarb emerging in the garden.

Oct. 2: The first cold front of October arrives near this date, but the weak lunar phase should soften its effects.