Fall of the year is in full force in Southern Appalachia. The trees have turned and many are dropping their leaves. We’ve had temperatures in the upper 30s at night this week.
- Fall, n. Bout at wrestling.
- Fall, n. A terrace. “There are three falls in the garden.”
- Fall, n. The quantity of rain or snow that falls at one time. “There was a heavy fall of rain last night.”
- Fall, n. The season when leaves fall from the trees. Fall of the year. The months of September, October, and November.
- Fall, v. To cut down a tree: as, to fall a tree; to fall timber.
—Word-Book of Virginia Folk-Speech written by B.W. Green (Copyright 1899)
I’m familiar with all of the fall entries from the old book, except the first two in the list.
We haven’t had any frost right here at our house but the surrounding areas have had spotty frost. A friend told me there was some in Moccasin Creek yesterday morning and Steve said he heard there was some here and there in Murphy.
We’ve usually had a good frost by now. The extended forecast shows warmer temperatures at night for next week but lower temperatures during the day. So it might could be November before we have our first big frost.
Last night’s video: Our Favorite Tuna Fish Salad Sandwich & Doing Around the Kitchen in Appalachia.
Tipper
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Norman, Wilson and Presley families, all those with loved ones in need of God’s healing, comfort and peace prayers up for all. Praise our God and Father in the name and Jesus always. My most favorite seasons, top to bottom-1. Fall 2.Summer 3.Spring 4.Winter. Love them all. Variety is the spice of life. Always with blessings, love and prayers. Prayers for peace, love and friendship for our country. Love to Tipper.
There was frost on the neighbor’s house across the road this morning. Dusty had to warm up his car before he left for work because his windshield was frosted over. He said it was 36º.
Anybody here ever heard of “a falling in the weather”? I heard a story of a woods crew seeing a possum carrying leaves to its den late one fall day. An old timer in the crew said, “Boys, there’s gonna be a falling in the weather afore mornin. And it ain’t gonna be rain.” By daylight there were several inches of snow. Of course that’s not the word “fall”, strictly speaking, but does illustrate another Appalachian way of using the word “fall”. Reminds me of Dad saying “when smoke goes (falls) to the ground its gonna turn colder.” Can’t remember that without thinking of the whiff of sulphur in the coal smoke from the old heating stove. No frost here yet, but soon coming. Has been some down on the creek a mile away I think. When that starts happening, it will be here soon, probably within a week.
I love fall so much. My favorite time of year but this time I have an allergy that has been kicking me for almost two weeks. Ragweed I guess. Leaves at my place in Choestoe are beautiful!
I am familiar with all of Ed’s uses and all of yours’s except the 2nd one. The temp. at my house was 33 at 7 AM. My wife is always cold regardless of the temps. I tease her that if she ever freezes to death it’ll be on the 4th of July.
It’s Fair Week in Raleigh. We could always count on Fair Week bringing 2 things to town: the first frost and the World Series. Seems both come later in the year nowadays.
Cousin Ed, clarify something for me. I always heard that a tree was ‘felled’. Or, if stating the intention . . . I’m going to fell a tree. Have you ever heard the past tense of the verb used in that context?
Norman, you and your brother, Bennie, are in my prayer list.
Those who have persimmon trees or medlar trees or other fruit that needs a good frost to “blet” (turn pickably sweet on the tree from the “freeze-thaw” cycle in autumn, earlier or later depending on latitude and altitude) are just praying for one good frost so they can get it over with already.
Apropos of Tipper and the pear jelly, if you have any of the invasive Callery pears nearby, supposedly the fruit improves with bletting and can be cooked down to make a glaze for e.g., ham. The wood, if you scavenge it from broken limbs (the tree is supposedly very weak), isn’t all that great for heating, but it can add some flavor in smoking. I don’t know if you can just cut them down willy-nilly. Might they produce new growth from the stump if you don’t completely uproot them?
It seems that every year I feel the cold a little more. It was 31 degrees here in north central North Carolina at about 8 AM this morning and I am freezing. My 73 years are starting to get the best of me in cold weather.
Differently no frost here in southern Oklahoma. It is starting to get some cooler. I watched a Christmas video from 2023, I think. Paul & Granny were singing a Christmas Carole; I found myself quietly singing along. Oh, how my heart aches for my Granny.
As always, praying for Granny! Praying for Norman’s brother Bennie as well.
Patchy frost in west-central Virginia this morning. Cold mornings, afternoons in the 60s.
I have heard all but the first one in your list Tipper, plus have heard all the ones on Ed Ammon’s list. And of course, I have taken my own ‘falls’ – breaking a few bones as result. No frost here in my community, though other outlying areas have had some, but we do have some colorful leaves which are ‘falling.’ I love the Fall of the year. Prayers continue for Granny.
Heavy frost in southeastern Ohio this morning. We’ve had it threaten a couple times but this is the first I’ve seen. I love winter and hoping for a couple good snows this one. Best to all of you and prayers for Granny.
Fall of the year is my least favorite time, and to make matters worse, the trees are not going to be one bit colorful this year. We had our first freeze warning last night, and freeze it did. We usually have a few hard frosts before a freeze, but not this fall. My heat has been turned on in my house for about two weeks, and I’m still freezing. It’s going to take a good fire in the woodstove to warm me up. Norman, I’m praying for you and your brother.
We got up to our first frost in the Richmond, Va. suburbs this morning. Accuwether had a frost warning posted for outlying areas.
Burr ! woke to the first frost of the season here in East Tennessee. Going need to drag out the winter coat for pre dawn activities here on the farm. I think if the rain holds off, this might be one of the prettiest falls leaf wise in years.
I don’t recognize the first two either. There is “ The fall of man” in the Garden of Eden.
The word fall is a very versatile word.
BBBRRR, it is 31F at 7:30am on my side of the mountain here in NE TN. I love the fall but winter keep trying to come early. I do not like winter. I went to the Senior Center yesterday and walked a mile at the city park with 100 people. It was some event to encourage Seniors to exercise. Anyhoo, I loved the Tuna Sandwich video. I usually put chopped hard boiled egg, dill pickle,, red onion and mayo (I’ve been using the Kraft or walmart olive oil blend) in mine. I’m gonna add the sweet pickle and mustard next time. I grew up on Sunbeam bread. I use to get to eat it at my best friends house. My son is allergic to the barley flour that is in all commercial made bread except 100% whole wheat. I don’t mind it because it has been 5 yrs now since I’ve tasted anything anyway. No flavor, just a sensation of sweet, sour, bitter or cardboard. Sometimes sweet is very bitter. It was upsetting at first but now it is just my normal. Count your blessings, at least I can chew and swallow. Prayers for y’all up Wilson Hollow and here on the page. I love ya.
We haven’t had a frost here in north KS either. We have usually had several by now. Still have tomatoes coming in from the garden. I am fine with a little longer till cold, but my husband is ready. We do need a freeze to kill off the bugs before we kill some of our hogs. May be wellinto November for us, our forecast says. Like Randy said, I don’t know what kind of winter this foretells. Hope you all have a blessed weekend! ❤️
Meg, you mentioned killing hogs, years ago my family and many other neighborhood families would raise a hog or two to kill at home around Thanksgiving. The goal was to have the hogs weigh around 500lbs none of today’s 225-250 lb hogs. We would put the hams, shoulders, fatback/sidemeat and maybe some other cuts in a thick wooden box kept in an unheated outside building and cover the meat in salt. After a period of time, the ham and shoulders would be taken out, washed off and hung on a nail and wire from a ceiling joist. Rats would not climb down the wire. As a child, the meat would be so salty I could hardly eat it. The point I am trying to make is unlike today’s weather, the weather would be cold enough by Thanksgiving and stay cold enough to do this without the meat spoiling. Shoulders are the front legs, some folks would grind them up in their sausage. For us and many other families, a hog was our main source of meat, only a few families had a cow to kill for beef. We would render out much of the fat for lard and the cooked chunks of fat would be called cracklings. A corn fed chicken fried in a black cast iron skillet and hog lard will make your tongue smack out you brains. We you finished eating you would swirl your tongue around inside your mouth hoping to find a piece you hadn’t swallowed.
There’s a woman’s hair extension called a fall.
There’s a device for lifting called a chain fall.
There’s taking the blame for what someone else did called the fall.
There’s fall behind in a race.
There’s fall in love or in line.
There’s fall short. (This one applies to me a lot!)
Ed, I’ve heard of all of yours except for the first two. And like you I fall short a lot too. 🙂
Ed, you are always a wealth of information. I always enjoy your comments.
Mr. Ammons- heard them all except #2.
So far in Greenville County, SC our nighttime temps have been no lower than the low 40’s. Many years we will have had a frost by now. We have been very dry all summer and now so far this fall. People are being asked to not do any outside burning. A few days ago I saw a weather forecast for the winter in my area, it was above average temperatures and below average rainfall.I don’t think I have ever seen the nut bearing trees have more mast on them than this year if that means anything about the weather.
good morning, my brother Bennie, will be seeing the cancer doctor today, and a lung doctor, thank you for praying for him and God bless you very much
Thoughts and prayers for your brother from Ohio.
Norman, I’m praying for your brother!