September
Calm in the changing
September has a sense of ease about it, a calmness that comes from just knowing it will all be right in the end. Without ego or expectations. September is the start of autumn, and it stands firm in its agenda to welcome the new season. It is a month for greatness, how could it not be. Autumn is harvest time.
Crops spend long summer months basking in the rich energy of the sun, storing up resources and gathering pace for the final push. Flowering has done its job and the fruits of each plant's labour is on display for all to admire and enjoy.
Where late spring and early summer are a colourful display of vibrancy to grab hold of the attention of any passer-by, autumn favours a more muted palette. Quietly content with simple shades of earthy tones.
Autumn carries with it so much activity by contrast to its mood, mostly just getting on with it in the background rather than shouting about it, and September is the beginning. September sets the tone for the rest of the season.
Wild mushrooms march forth largely unnoticed, gathering pace as autumn's first moisture begins to gather. Calmly making their presence known almost as if by accident, perhaps apologetically covering the ground with a display that is understated in its elegance and splendour. A silent charge, peppering the ground with fantastical shapes and patterns, adding life to that which is fading.
The horse chestnut is a seasonal barometer, calmly signalling change with a stoical air about it, and September brings conkers. The first true signs that something has shifted and the new has already been ushered in. Conkers creep up almost unannounced, or perhaps it's that August has too many distractions to notice. But it is not until the paths become littered with the spiky casings and rich golden brown nuts that the quiet background activity becomes noticeable.
This is where September arrives as a bit of a surprise, a month that sneaks up unannounced. All of a sudden it's dark at eight and the mornings gather a chill. It's not quite jeans and a jumper weather, but shorts need a tag team of something a little more substantial than a T-shirt. Conversations are studded with, "but last week it was glorious and hot".
While September is a changeable month, it does this with a sense of ease, unlike the volatility of March. There is a feeling of acceptance, a sense that whatever goes is just fine. September goes with the flow.
Cravings drift towards substance, and the fields have already responded without anyone noticing. The summer squash are ready for harvest, and it is here that September shows its season. Soft skinned, summer grown squash are equally adept at being roasted as they are lightly cooked and mixed through a lighter meal. This is September, adept at its ever changing character.
While the squash is most certainly a sign of autumn, September carries with it the last of summer's bounty. Tomatoes, courgettes, peppers, chillies, aubergines, cucumbers, herbs and even salad leaves still make their presence felt as they wind down for another year.
Tomatillos are a fleeting but enjoyable seasonal treat. While their heritage is far afield, many growers have embraced these curious fruits. Not quite a tomato, not entirely likened to anything else to look at. They carry a September vibe, that of mixed character and flexibility. Roasted or raw, they aren't bothered.
September brings new life to the hedgerow as it offers up a parting gift for the year. Berries begin to ripen, spreading deepening shades of red and crimson across the countryside. Hawthorn that showers spring with its blossom confetti signals the end of growth for the year with haw berries. Rowan, guelder rose and wild rose also put on a final display, all waiting for the first frost to intensify the sweetness in preparation for their journey into the kitchen.
Soft stone fruits are the champions of September's fruits. Victoria plums and damsons are seasonal champions, synonymous with the changing mood of food, steeped in heritage. Plum jam and damson gin. Crumbles and sauces, perhaps a few chutneys as the month progresses. Then they are gone, leaving only sloes to enrich a warming winter tipple.
September brings a comforting transition, an ease to calm the nerves of change, to be found in its flexibility and effortless shifting character. It is the month that lets us know everything is going to be alright, enjoy what's to come and embrace the shifting season.
September is the year's chameleon; calmly transitioning to meet its backdrop.
Heritage | Environment | Craft
Curated with Terroir
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