Larry Zilliox, Extension Educator
Douglas County Extension Service
(320) 762-3890
June 9, 2008
In the Garden with Extension Educator Larry Zilliox
Summer Solstice
We are coming up on a significant event in the northern hemisphere. It is called "summer solstice" or the longest day of the year. I have always been fascinated by it and annually mark the date by observing where the sun sets on my property. There is a large basswood tree on the lake shore that marks the northern most spot that the sun travels each year. I make a point of seeing it set that evening because it quickly retreats and starts heading south again signaling fall and winter are on their way.
I don't know why summer solstice intrigues me, maybe because of my agricultural background, a time of transition from the planting season to the beginning of harvest activities. We still have many customs that revolve around this time of the year, the most obvious being weddings. In rural communities it was a time when people had a break from the busy schedule of spring activities of planting crops and the birthing of livestock. People are hopeful that it will be a good year seeing the crops growing and young animals frolicking in the farm yard.
It was a good time to start a new life by getting married and building a new house to protect you from the coming winter. It was a time to renew friendships and build community good through festivals. The Scandinavian Countries have taken it to the extreme by celebrating for several days and not always the same days in different communities so that one can party for a week or more.
As I get older I am appreciating this period more and more. I think it is because my family has grown and built their own nest, that my job feels secure, and the bills are under control. Besides it is time to slow down and smell the roses as the saying goes. I have come to enjoy friends and family and want to develop closer relations with the people I interact with each day. In a sense it is like cultivating a garden. We have put in a lot of work, and maybe sweat, planting and controlling weeds. Now it is time to step back and let Mother Nature show us her beauty and handiwork before fall's harvest begins.
My house was built facing the west and I have patio French doors in which the sun sets directly in the middle of the doors on the equinox of September 21 and March 21. That is the next signal to me that harvest season is upon us and that we need to hustle along with the squirrels in capturing the crop before it is hidden by falling leaves or winter snow. It is also a reminder that hibernation is not a bad thing, giving us new opportunities to take on indoor hobbies or reading a few books, or if we really want to hibernate turn on the TV. Maybe "A Midsummer's Night's Dream" by Shakespeare would capture the summer again.
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Strange how much you have to know, before you know how little you know.