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September 04, 1980 - The Summer's GoneSECOND SECTION Tbr *uff oft Ttmrs' The Summer's Gone The summer's gone. Our island once more has settled down and belongs to us. Yet it's sad in a way, for we think of how this land and water around us here on the North Fork have given so much enjoyment to so many people. It's too bad it can't last forever. But then that's the changing of the seasons. Living out here, you can see these changes in the seasons so much better than those down the west end. Just looking at the farms tells us potato season has started to wind down and fall must be coming. Most farmers are on their last irrigation and many already have started to dig. From here on getting the potatoes out of the ground and into storage will be their major thruki:'As a sideline, new, neat rows of cauliflower can be seen in well- cultivated fields. Their greenish -gray leaves look forward to the cool fall weather, for that is their time of the year. All along our roadsides the dried grasses and last remains of summer flowers tell us that summer has passed. Just the other day I saw a car stop and a lady get out and cut dried stalks of flowers for her winter bouquets. Her harvest was the dried seed heads of dock ... that big leafy plant that now has the tall dry, brown seed stalks so common throughout the land. Along with the dock you'll see the tall seed head of the common mullein. Some are still green, with their little yellow flowers, while most have passed and will remain dried sentinels through the winter. They're the plant that has the velvety green rosette of leaves at its base. It's a plant of the dry and areas, for nature has provided it with long roots that reach far beneath the dryness of the upper soil. Many of the handsome Queen Anne's lace blossoms now almost past have taken on their curled winter appearance. How exquisitely delicate these flowering heads of white are when examined closely. They're always part of our flower arrange- ments at home, whether it be in summer, or dried in winter. Ready For Picking The tall blue chicory has been exception- ally handsome this year. Its blue is the truest of all blues. Its flowers last one day, but being part of nature's prolific garden, a new one appears to take its place, giving the appearance of a continually blossom- ing plant. Three, four and five feet tall, it grows along our roadside. Sometimes in great masses. Sometimes singly. The leftover grain from the edges of the farmer's field and the wild grasses that line our open roadsides are varied and dry for the picking right now. Wheat is a special treat to find, for it has extra long, needle -like seed heads; but probably the most common grain you'll find will be the rye, for it is used as a cover crop and escapes many plowed fields. The grasses are endless in size and form, and many are so small and delicate that we often overlook them for the gaudier and more obvious ones, such as the tall foxtail grass and the three -sided sedges or goose grass that have clusters of star -burst seed heads at the top. The names are unimport- ant, for the real joy of dried flowers is in their shape and make -up. The important thing is to become involved in the outside world in one way or another. Collecting Plan Needed Of course, to make collecting exciting you really have to plan for it. Collecting, drying and storing are the essentials. Much of the work has been done for you already, what with the dry weather we have had this year. Often though, you want to pick a plant green for some reason or another and you must then proceed to dry it immediately. There are many ways to do this, one being to dry your plants just like hanging out your clothes. Often they do not dry enough in one day and dampness moves in, with the result your specimens become blackened and mil- dewed. Hanging out works well only in dry, hot weather. Most people have their own special way to dry plants indoors. Laying them on a tray in the oven under very low heat works well for some. Keeping them in a paper bag and hanging them up in a dry, hot attic works well for others. Today is no longer a his and her activity world -- it can be hoth, and so the next time you (he or she) see a plant or grass that would make good material for a dried arrangement later on in the winter when the snows fly -- collect it. It can be the seed head from one of your forgotten onions in the garden or the weed you pulled and just noticed its charm, or it can be the tall stand of dried plume grass that you never really thought of as being part of your collection. Any of these and many more can be collected now. Later they can be used to bring in some of the outdoors of today. PAUL STOUTENBURGH SEPTEMBER 4, 1980 DRIED GRASSES - -Dried plants of late summer in many shapes and sizes are best collected now for the joy of winter arrangements later. Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh � A Light Hearted Look At The ROARING TWENTIES r c� c� At The GENERAL WAYNE INN THE RED ROBIN REVIEW Friday, Saturday & Sunday 7:30 Dinner & 9:00 Show Complete Dinner and Show .. only $14.95 (total) Show Only ...$5.00 For Reservations Call 765.3345 GENERAL WAYNI Bayview Road, Southold. It's The Talk Of The Town - Don't Miss /t! c—� c� c—wws c� c� c--s