84-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, August 16, 2003 On Being a Farm Wife (and other hazards Joyce Bupp The air hangs heavy on this fruity aroma onto a welcome puff humid, sticky day. of breeze skipping through the “So thick you could almost cut screens. The melon’s signature it with a knife,” was how my sce nt, coupled with a golden un mother used to describe such dercolor breath its webbed skin JSS m t^ m r ta ,B der flesh. While we ve enjoyed casting a bluish tinge over the leafy green fencerows and wood lots, suggesting that fog rolling in is immi nent. Ominous, steely gray clouds pile up on the horizon. Thunder storms could wash out and freshen the air. Or, they might just stir the pot of heat and humidity, pouring in still more moisture to intensify this cauldron of steaminess. Predictable. Because it’s mid- August. Hanging in the air, equally as thick as the moisture droplets causing the August midday mist, is a tan talizing perfume be loved by farmers. It’s a scent heavy with promiset, laden with potential in the form of delicate silky strands and minute bits of plant reproduc tive matter. The com is pollinat ing. While we humans wilt in the oppressive overbearing humidity, corn plants thrive on summer sultriness and plentiful showers. Corn is a tropical plant, happily thriving in a moist, mid-80 de gree environment. Plus, the haziness in the air probably helps somewhat to limit the sun’s baking tendency, which can overheat and kill a com plant’s sensitive pollination mechanisms. After an incredibly poor wheat crop, af flicted with fungus and diseases from pro longed moisture, and battling many-times rinsed hay harvests, farmers relish the aroma of pollinating corn. It offers the promise of tall, thick stalks bearing ears of golden kernels to re plenish bags, bins and bunkers, to feed live stock, to generate some return on pour ing into the soil thou sands of dollars worth of seed and fertilizers. Only for these few brief August days does this corny fragrance float its enticement in the humid air. But as the scent drifts from the fields in through the kitchen windows, it blends with others marking these fleeting few weeks of fading summer. A cantaloupe on the counter drifts a light, Every Farmer Deserves A Good Night’s Sleep! 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Peaches are equally delicious, their luscious fragrance freshen ing the seasonal mildewy damp ness of the basement. Picked and purchased just slightly underripe, they finish reaching full flavor and tenderness laid out in a sin gle layer in a shallow cardbox and blanketed with newspaper. The aroma reminds me to check them every day and serve them up in various ways at peak taste. Or just enjoy one eaten out of hand, yellow-orange juice drip- ping from one’s chin. While their scent is far more subtle, tomatoes Recognized byNASA reiWi\ nu Sfute Fuj Ki3tk>i Free Delivery within 30 Miles, Delivery Available beyond 30 miles and to neighboring states or stop by when in the area and get a discount for pickup SHIRTS { OR SWEATSHIRTS V Sweatshirts Exclusive viscoelastic nuncle is on the mM'-ali you do is he down on it’ • 100% Cotton Denim Long • 90% cotton - dark Sleeve Blue with embroidery • Embroidery Blue & Black With Lancaster Farming • Lancaster Farming Logo Logo • Button-Down Collar $25 - Medium, Large • Left Shirt Pocket $27.50 - X Large • Stone Bleach Blue $28.50 - 2X Large $2O - Small, Medium, Large $22.50 - X Large $23.50 - 2X Large Or Stop @ Office -1 East Main St., Ephrata, PA Saves Shipping Cost! command almost as much affec tion here as do the sweet fruits of August. Foliage of tomatoes are another August scent, not floral, not unpleasant, but definitely dis tinctive. And, even if you’re not a green thumb gardener, picking tomatoes will give you one, at least until you wash the greenish stem stains away with a good, strong soap. While not a fruit, the luscious ness of fresh sweet corn, plucked from the stalks and husked while a kettle of water is heating to boiling on the stove, is the epit ome of seasonal culinary offer ings. And the epicurean treats of August are so simple and basic steaming ears of sweet com Shirts Plus $4.50 Shipping & Handling Costs QQ Phone 717-721-4416 Or Mail Your Order To: Lancaster Farming P.O. box 609LFS 1 East Main St., Ephrata, PA 17522 served a half-hour from the stalk, sunny slices of peaches oozing juice in a dish of cream, tender crisp melon balls piled into a pretty dish for dessert. And ripe tomatoes. Finally. And none of these would be as locally-grown-delicious without the steamy, sultry, stuffy days it takes to develop their full flavor and taste appeal. Accepting that helps to make this sweat-soaked season a bit more appealing.
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