Page 12 THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2021 SAUGUS GARDENS IN THE FALL Here’s what’s blooming in town this week to make your walks more enjoyable By Laura Eisener louds and rainy weather may have blocked the view of the lunar eclipse last Friday morning, but subsequent evenings of crisp and cloudless skies allowed a good view of November’s full moon, which is known as the beaver moon and sometimes as the frost moon. At this time of year, I spend some evenings bringing tender plants in containers indoors to save them from frost just a little longer, and bringing them out again in late morning when the thermometer has climbed. Some of the onions, herbs and rainbow chard will be included in our Thanksgiving dinner. While the fi rst thing many people think of at a Thanksgiving feast is turkey, traditional foods typically include a wide range of late season vegetables and fruits which are harvested around the time of frost. Root vegetables, like potatoes, beets, turnips, carrots and sweet potatoes, which would have been dug up shortly before the ground C FALL-THEMED BANNERS AND GOLDEN FOLIAGE on Central Street near Saugus Center highlight the charms of late autumn. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) froze and which can be stored in underground root cellars, would have been practical choices in pre-refrigeration days. Crops like winter squash and pumpkin would also be good choices. Leafy vegetables like cabbage and kale would also be seasonally appropriate. Fruits which could be stored for a few months and were not especially perishable include apples and cranberries, so we very often SIGNS OF FALL: Hay bales and a plethora of pumpkins in late fall’s low afternoon light tell the story of the season. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) SAGE (Salvia officinalis) is one of the most recognizable fl avors of traditional turkey stuffi ng – this one is very locally grown (on my porch)! (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) think of them in connection with Thanksgiving, too. Bell’s Seasoning, one of the oldest and most frequently used seasoning blends for Thanksgiving turkeys, includes rosemary, oregano, sage, ginger, marjoram, thyme and pepper. The William C. Bell Company started in Boston in 1867, making it 154 years old this year. The small, bright yellow cardboard box with the picture of the turkey was always conspicuous in my mother’s and grandmother’s kitchens when I was growing up, and the fragrance of that combination of herbs and spices will always be part of the Thanksgiving preparations in my memories. According to the company today, the blend has not changed since it was introduced a few years after the Civil War ended. The production these days takes place in East Weymouth and is owned by Brady Enterprises, and the Bell’s label also includes such Thanksgiving staples as gravy and stuffi ng. Common sage is a hardy peHAPPY THANKSGIVING! This turkey extends a holiday greeting to passersby from my neighbors the Swible family on Fairmount Avenue. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) NORWAY MAPLE (Acer platanoides) branches still laden with leaves frame the moon, a day past the full moon of November. (Courtesy photo to The Saugus Advocate by Laura Eisener) rennial herb, and its fragrance in my garden always makes me think of Thanksgiving no matter what time of year I encounter it. On Thanksgiving day, I knew I would be greeted with that fragrance at my grandmother’s house once we had gone over the Saugus River and through the woods – or at least the tree-lined streets GARDENS | SEE PAGE 17
13 Publizr Home