8 “In The Moon of Leaves" (Hiawatha)

End of a first-rate farming week, May 27, 1916; oats sown, potatoes planted. Swallow—tail Butterfly (P. turnus) flying, May 27, 1934; Bain says it appears “in the first days of July” but I have another note: June 5, 1920, and June 5, 1921.

Trees leafing rapidly—horse-ehes-tnu'ts earliest, ‘May 28, 1929. Planted garden stuff May 28, 1917.

Heard Night Hawk (“Mosquito H.”) about 8:30 p. m. in Charlottetown, May 29, 1929. These birds are getting scarce. First Mosquito in house May 30, 1933.

May 31, 1917; close of a cold, backward month; English farmers report their vegetables a full month late. Furnace still going May 31, 1924; inside temperature of a room without fire 60 degrees. “The country looks delightful,” May 31, 1928. End of warm month as the temperature reaches 71 deg, in the shade at 3 p. m. on May 31, 1932.

JUNE

And the world’s a symphony in green! Myriads of flow- ers peep at us from the roadsides, the open hardwood groves, and the marshy flats. We have for so long been accustomed to the whiteness of the winter landscape that the springing verdure see-ms miraculous—as indeed it is. But just as the British gard- ener and orchardist fears the frosts of early May, so here we dread the first weeks of June and defer the planting of our tender- est vegetables till they are past.

About the end of the second week occurs the “Sheep Storm” which formerly destroyed numbers of sheep, when the thin, sheared animals were drenched by the pitiless easterly rain. 'To avoid the loss the pioneers changed the «date of shearing till later in the month. The air now begins to electrify, and sometimes we have violent thunder—storms; towards the end of the month it may also become very humid. June in the pleasantest month of the year, for the cold has gone and the heat has not yet come: and all the summer lies before us.

Here are divers notes on the first of June. A cold raw day, june I, 1916. Planted-onion sets. (they don’t mind frost), June 1, 1917. Cotton grass (Eriophorum) flowering in the swamps, June 1, 1919. Rain squalls all day June I, 1924, All grain sown, June 1, 1925. Very warm day, 76 deg. in the shade at 5 p. In. June I, 1927.

Dwarf Raspberry (R. triflorus) in bloom June 2, 1918. Wild.

Strawberry in bloom June 2, 1926; on this date, at 9 p. m., the thermometer registered 46 deg. Pain-ted Trillium flowers on June 2, 1927.

Edible Morels (Morchella conica) abundant June 3, 1926.