It Was a Lovely Autumn at the Farm

Photos taken this Fall at our farm in upstate New York:

In the Days of the Golden Rod

(All photos taken at or near Cassandra's upstate New York farmhouse.)

Across the meadow in brooding shadow
I walk to drink of the autumn's wine­
The charm of story, the artist's glory,
To-day on these silvering hills is mine;
On height, in hollow, where'er I follow,
By mellow hillside and searing sod,
Its plumes uplifting, in light winds drifting,
I see the glimmer of golden-rod.

In this latest comer the vanished summer
Has left its sunshine the world to cheer,
And bids us remember in late September
What beauty mates with the passing year.
The days that are fleetest are still the sweetest,
And life is near to the heart of God,
And the peace of heaven to earth is given
In this wonderful time of the golden-rod.

 by Lucy Maud Montgomery

Summer Sunset

(Photos recently taken by Cassandra at her upstate New York farm...)

Sweet day of summer balm and rest,

Oh, stay thy flight!

Still wave, above yon mountain's crest,

Thy banners bright!

Still hold the portals of the west

Against the night!

Lo!  how the waving forest trees

Beckon they stay!

Hark, how the fragrant evening's breeze

Doth woo delay!

While thrushes plead across the leas,

Pass not away!

But though all nature join the cry,

Not yet - not yet!

Behind yon rocky rampart high

Thy sun will set!

Each bird will hush - each floweret's eye

With tears be wet!

E'en now beyond the purpling hill

Thy light hath past:

The woodland shadows, silent chill--

Are o'er me cast.

The while thou wingest, tireless till

Thou gild the east!

The Father knows we cannot bear

Unclouded light;

Therefore each perfect day must share

With darksome night --

Until He bring that dawning fair,

Eternal--bright!

~ George S. Dwight, from The Cool of the Day, 1892

It’s Lilac Time!

I am thinking of the lilac-trees,
That shook their purple plumes,

And when the sash was open,

Shed fragrance through the room.

~ Anna S. Stephens

A lilac-themed corner in Cassandra's farmhouse parlor



I recently learned, via a gardening article in our local newspaper, why lilac blossoms are not as profuse in our Nation’s Capital region as at our upstate New York farm. Lilacs do not flower well in the Agriculture Department’s Zone 7 and in warmer hardiness zones. These zones also provide perfect conditions for powdery mildew to develop due to the oppressive heat of the summer months.

When lilacs last in the door-yard bloom’d,

And the great star early droop’d in the western sky in the night,

I mourn’d—and yet shall mourn with ever-returning spring.

~ Walt Whitman—When Lilacs Last in the Door-Yard Bloom’d. I. Leaves of Grass. 5

Lilacs must be planted to receive full sun, cold winter weather, and mild weather with good air circulation in spring and summer.  No wonder our New York lilacs are so beautiful – they were planted years ago in the perfect conditions!  How I love gathering huge bouquets of the sweetly fragrant blossoms...

Lilacs characteristically develop a mass of roots.  Lilac cuttings easily root if taken in mid-June.  The cuttings should be 8 to 10 inches long, dipped in a rooting hormone, and placed in a sand medium under mist.  Since lilac blooms occur on stems that formed last year, branches should only be pruned in late spring as flowers fade from these stems.  I don’t believe our New York lilacs have been pruned for years, but I look forward to wielding my pruning shears next month!

With every leaf a miracle … and from this bush in the door-yard,
With delicate-colour’d blossoms, and heart-shaped leaves of rich green

A sprig, with its flower, I break.

Walt Whitman—When Lilacs Last in the Door-Yard Bloom’d. III. Leaves of Grass.

Two of Cassandra's Lilac-themed Decorative Bookcovers:

The lilac spread
Odorous essence.

~ Jean Ingelow—Laurance. Pt. III.

The Word

(All photos taken by Cassandra last week at her upstate New York farm)

The Word

by Richard Realf (1832-1878)

“O earth! Thou hast not any wind that blows

Which is not music; every week of thine

Pressed rightly flows in aromatic wine;

And every humble hedgerow flower that grows,

And every little brown bird that doth sing,

Hath something greater than itself, and bears

A living word to every living thing,

Albeit it holds the message unaware,

All shapes and sound have something which is not

Of them: a Spirit broods amid the grass;

Vague outlines of the Everlasting Thought

Lie in the melting shadows as they pass;

The touch of an Eternal Presence thrills

The fringes of the sunsets and the hills.”



Autumn at Our Farm

(All photos taken last week at our Schoharie County, New York farm)

                    An Antique Postcard from my Collection

A haze on the far horizon...

The infinite, tender sky...

The ripe, rich tint of the cornfields...

And the wild geese sailing by...

And all over the upland and lowland, the charm of the goldenrod...

Some of us call it Autumn, and others call it God.



The Beauty of July at Our Farm

O earth! Thou hast not any wind that blows
Which is not music; every week of thine
Pressed rightly flows in aromatic wine;
And every humble hedgerow flower that grows,
And every little brown bird that doth sing,
Hath something greater than itself, and bears
A living word to every living thing,
Albeit it holds the message unaware,
All shapes and sound have something which is not
Of them: a Spirit broods amid the grass;
Vague outlines of the Everlasting Thought
Lie in the melting shadows as they pass;
The touch of an Eternal Presence thrills
The fringes of the sunsets and the hills.
By Richard Realf

Where, Oh Where is Cassandra?

A place near and dear to my heart: our 180 year old farmhouse in upstate New York...

Established in 1830, our farm is situated on 80 mountain-view acres in a historic (Iroquois Indian, Revolutionary War, and near the old Erie Canal) and geologically-interesting (near Howe and Secret Caverns) area between Albany and Cooperstown.

The farmhouse, located under an old “spreading chestnut tree,” is reputed to have been a stop on the “Underground Railroad”. It was purchased 53 years ago from the family of the original owner/builder by my husband’s aunt and uncle. Until recently, the house had undergone very little modernization - the aunt and uncle installed the first running water, indoor toilet and bath in the 1980s and we recently installed the home's first furnace, hot water heater, and dishwasher.

Features of the farmhouse which are especially notable are the wide board chestnut floors, the exposed hand-hewn beams (hewn with a broadaxe and exposed in the living room), the original steep wooden staircase, the original wrought iron nails and Blake’s patent cast iron thumb latches on several of the upstairs doors, and the original crane in the fireplace graced by a simple Greek Revival style mantle. I enjoy digging up old china, glass shards, and clam shells in the earth surrounding the house and identifying the 19th century china patterns of the farm’s founding family (on which I have researched a genealogy).

An early 20th century photo of hay harvesting on our farm

Blake’s patent cast iron thumb latch

View of stone fence from dining room...

The second story of the house retains its original plank constructed doors. Two bedchambers are located on the northern side of the staircase and central hallway and two on the southern side. The former small closet on the south side of the central hallway was recently converted to a half bath with sink and toilet. (Note the original hand-wrought nails and the pencil-written initials on the back of the half bath door – possibly those of the carpenter who constructed it.)

From the hill on which the farm is located, one can see mountain views of the high peaks of the Adirondacks to the far north, the Green Mountains of Vermont to the far northeast, the Helderberg Mountains to the east and the Berkshires of Massachusetts to the far east, and the Catskills (seen below) to the south.

Our property boasts several “Northern Spy” apple trees;

wild strawberries;

 daisies and black-eyed susans;

buttercups, clover and Queen Anne’s lace;

wild aster and goldenrod.

Our acreage includes three corn /hay fields farmed by a dairy farmer down the road, who sells his milk to Vermont’s Cabot Cheese Company.

We also have many birds - crows, red-winged blackbirds, robins, red-tailed hawks, mourning doves, wood thrushes, uireos, and owls; mammals - white-tail deer, cottontail rabbits, chipmunks, red and eastern grey squirrel, woodchucks, red fox (and we have been told of an occasional coyote); and amphibians - newts, toads, and yellow-spotted (see the beauty recently spotted below) and red eft salamanders.

We love the old stone fence full of fossils...

...and the amazing sunset views, which change with the seasons.

Two old pumps still stand in the front and side yards.

The old barns blew down several years ago - thankfully, we have old photos (this one taken by a local newspaper after a mid-May snowfall!)

We still have much of the old barn wood – and a much-in-need -of -restoration one horse open sleigh still resides in the storage barn.

A historic cave (under which is reputed to be an underground lake) is located in a forest in our “back 40” acres; and we have been told that the residents in the county seat village down the hill receive all their water from under our hill.

Our back deck at dusk...

A Mosaic of Interior Furnishings

To magnify the mosaic above, click on it ~ then click on it once again!

1. Crocks, 2. Flax Wheel, 3. Dome and Candle, 4. Dining Room Lamp, 5. The Shepherd, 6. Kitchen, 7. Kitchen Table, 8. Stenciled Chair, 9. Living Room Corner, 10. Living Room Desk, 11. Washstand, 12. Fireplace, 13. Lilac Table, 14. Clock, 15. Bedroom Corner, 16. Tole Tray and Dough Bowl, 17. Crane, 18. Toleware Candle Sconce, 19. Fall Dome, 20. Bookcase, 21. Bedroom 4 dressertop, 22. ., 23. Upstairs Landing, 24. Powder Room 1, 25. Bedroom 3 three

Photos taken in Fall of 2010 at the farm and in the "neighborhood".  

 (With thanks and appreciation to John and Linda!)