Strawberry Solstice

I always thought, misguidedly it would appear, that Midsummer’s day was on the 21st June. However, I now stand fully informed by the interweb that it can fall on 20th,21st or 22nd June. As a consequence of my misunderstanding I missed my posting for the Summer Solstice, since I was away on a family trip to Hershey, Pennsylvania.

However, coincidence being what they are, on my return yesterday evening I thought I would potter about the vegetable garden and do some watering and weeding. (Bear with me.)

We have recently moved our strawberry bed (for the second time) and it has been spectacularly unsuccessful over the last two seasons. Therefore, I was more than happy to see half a dozen or so bright red strawberries beaming up at me in their freshly watered, and recently bird-proofed, bed.

I duly picked these for my beloved to have, as these were the first of the season and always remind me of our June wedding day xx years ago, when we also had the first strawberries of the year (back in the days when fruit was seasonal). After drifting into the house to browse the web, I found that Monday was not only the Summer Solstice, but also the rare incidence of a “Strawberry Moon”, which occurs roughly every 50 years or so.  

Now, I have never heard of a Strawberry Moon, but apparently it was so-called by the Algonquin tribes of North America who believed that a full moon in June signaled the start of the strawberry season.

What an odd coincidence…

Happy Midsummer’s Day to all!

~Richard