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This fir was seemed like it was near death, but in truth it looked pretty healthy as it fell.

Just a week or so ago they took down the fir next to the house. It was definitely dead. We continue to try to plant more than we lose.

The trees near the barn have a distinctly late-autumn look.

On Saturday we traveled to Saratoga to watch Sarah’s debut races with the Colgate crew team. She rowed in the stroke position in the Women’s Frosh/Novice Four and Eight shells, with her team finishing in the top half of each race. As you can see from her smile, it was a successful maiden voyage.

The pond is looking very spiffy this clear Fall Friday, ahead of our trip to visit Sarah for Parents’ Weekend at Colgate. Daisy will be vacationing in Pine Plains.

Today we attended the Sheep & Wool Festival at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds, perhaps the nation’s foremost gathering of ladies who like to knit. Among the offerings are skeins of yarn, wool socks, and lamb skewers.

Also today was the Landsman Kill Trail Association’s Fall Hunter Pace, which drew about 120 riders. Here you can see a couple of them behind our three willows, which we have named Location, Location, and Location.

Storms roll in; storms roll out. Trees fall down, in whole or in part.

Sometimes trees simply die and must be cut down before they fall on the house, as was the case with the fir tree near the end of our driveway.

However, in our ongoing effort to remain net neutral-to-positive, treewise, we planted a few this fall, including this redbud.

We also planted a couple of maples and this copper beech, which no doubt will be majestic by the time Sarah is in late middle age.

The river birch is said to like water. We’ll see about that: the last tree we planted anywhere nearby drowned.

Here is a distant view of one of the maples, which has a big screening job to do when it grows up.

Yesterday, when I called Herbie Stickle to ask whether he would get around to making hay this season, he asked whether I was in Rhinebeck. I told him I was in New York. “Too bad,” replied Herbie, “If you came outside we could say hello!” He had taken the call from one of our hayfields. I was immensely relieved. I would have an awful lot of mowing to do otherwise.

Saturday update: haymaking in progress.

Sarah says that square bales are like single-serve, while round bales are more like a buffet.

The Dutchess County Fair offers not only chances at glory, but also cash prizes.

Tomato production is in high gear, and it’s all we can do to keep up. How many BLTs and caprese salads are too many? We will find out.

Jen stays hydrated as she tends her garden.

Jen retained her marmalade crown at the 176th Dutchess County Fair. Her peach-lemon marmalade is loved by all.

Sarah, debuting in the 18-and-older category, crocheted her way to glory with this beautiful blanket.

I eked out the bronze in sweet pickles.

Sarah, who benefits from a Montessori education as well as a preternatural grasp of spatial relations inherited from her mother’s side of the family, neatly packs the family car to head off to Colgate this afternoon. A+ work here.