Hello, Adventurers! Welcome to the Coastal Expeditions blog! If you love outdoor activities such as hiking and paddling, exploring nature and learning about wildlife, you’ve come to the right place! Here on the Coastal Expeditions blog we dive deep into different habitats, excursions, conservation efforts and nature programs. To our return readers, thank you for your support! We commend you for being committed to learning! Our previous posts about the importance of practicing water safety and the benefits of spending time outdoors are currently available. There’s more to water safety than knowing CPR and first aid. As well, spending time in nature has more positive effects on the mind and body than we could possibly list! To understand the basics of water safety and learn about the correlation between going outside and feeling better, those articles are a great place to start!

What characterizes fall? Well, there’s chilly weather and changing leaves. There’s apple picking, wool sweaters, and pumpkin spice everything. There’s dressing up for Halloween. There’s making soup instead of salad. There’s Friday night football. There’s one million and one things which make fall the season what it is. But, the traditional purpose of this season has been forgotten alongside the more popular occurrences, and that’s: the fall harvest!

Since most crops are planted in the spring season and allowed to grow during the summer months, autumn is the time when crops are finally ready to be harvested. Harvest season spans from late September to early December and is a busy time among farmers. Since farmers must work to tend crops during the summer, their vacation isn’t until the middle of winter, once their harvest work is done.

Today, we want to discuss what happens during the harvest season, why harvest season is important, as well as what the symbolic meaning of the harvest season means for you! If you’ve ever gone apple picking, then you understand how sweet reaping the benefits of years-long growth can be. Likewise, Thanksgiving is meant to be a culmination of the fruitfulness of the growing season. Fall is the perfect time to celebrate a year’s efforts and prepare for winter. Let’s take a few moments to learn together how this season impacts farmers and the history of the harvest!

What is “harvesting”? 

When crops ripen, they’re ready to be harvested. Not all plants ripen in the fall, but the ones we commonly associate with fall do. These include: pumpkins, turnips, squash, zucchini, beets, eggplant, celery, apples, cranberries, grapes, pears, and pomegranates. There are even more fruits and vegetables which are harvested during the fall season, but these are the ones we’re most likely to find in our local grocery stores.

The word harvest comes from an Old English word which actually referred to the entire season of autumn. In Britain, harvest can still be used to refer to the season, which begins in August. “To harvest” means to reap, gather, and store what has been grown.

Does Daylight Savings Time have anything to do with the fall harvest season?

It’s commonly thought that daylight savings time arose from a need by farmers to have their day-to-day activities align with the sunlight. As you know, winter is characterized by shorter days (i.e. the sun rises later and sets earlier) than the summer. Therefore, twice a year, the clock is set back by one hour and set forward by one hour in order to allow farmers more time in their fields for work.

That’s actually not true.

Though the myth is widespread and many people are still under the impression it’s true, Daylight Savings Time has nothing to do with farmers or the fall harvest. As far back as 1784, Benjamin Franklin suggested (in a letter to the editor of The Journal of Paris) that if people woke up earlier in the summer, the usage of candles would decrease and everyone would save lots of money. He was joking, but more than a decade later, in 1895, an entomologist in New Zealand proposed the same thing to the Wellington Philosophical Society. George Hudson wanted to alter the time by two hours every spring so he could have more time to collect bugs in a day. He was serious, but no one treated his proposition as such.

In 1907, William Willett brought the idea up as a way to save energy. Again, no one paid heed.

The German Empire and Austria-Hungary were the first to adopt Daylight Savings in 1916. Daylight Savings was adopted by other countries, including the United States, during both World Wars but quickly abandoned afterwards. It wasn’t until an energy crisis in the 1970s that Daylight Savings Time became standard in America. Not to save candles or collect bugs, mind you, but to provide an extra hour of daylight during the summer months.

What’s harvested in South Carolina in October?

In the state of South Carolina, the month of October is the last time of the year when you can harvest apples, potatoes, pumpkins, winter butternut squash, and sweet potatoes. However, broccoli, cabbage, and kale will continue to be harvested until November. Christmas trees will, of course, be available for harvest from November until December. If you’re interested in harvesting for yourself, see whether your local farm has a picking program. Picking is a wonderful way to spend time outside and with the family!

How do we celebrate the fall harvest?

In antiquity, the end of the fall harvest has been associated with abundance and joy. Consider this: many months of hard work seeding, weeding, and reaping have culminated in an excess of food which will feed you and your community for many months. As well, you are free to spend the next few weeks doing as you wish, as there’s nothing left to be done. For this reason, the end of the fall harvest has inspired many festivals and holidays throughout history.

Lammas, meaning “loaf mass,” is a Christian tradition. Celebrated on August 1st and dating back to medieval times, the festival celebrates the First Fruits of harvest and includes the sanctification of a loaf of bread.

In the sixteenth century, at the end of the harvest, farmers would parade through town with a cart full of freshly reaped wheat, and shout, “Hooky, hooky!” The farmers were led by a particularly well-dressed reaper, who would hold his hat out for money.

Mehregan, also known as the Persian Festival of Autumn, began during the Persian Empire and is still celebrated today in countries like Iran and Afghanistan. Participants purchase new clothes and set a table with rosewater, candy, flowers, vegetables, fruits, and more. This festival celebrates the affection between friends and the love of family.

Some Jewish communities celebrate a harvest festival known as Sukkot. Sukkot is celebrated in the month of Tishrei, which like the Mid-Autumn Festival, falls between September and October on the Gregorian calendar we use. During this festival, participants build a hut in which they can eat, sleep, and pray for seven days. These huts resemble tabernacles used by Israelite farmers during the harvest. This time is considered joyous and is meant to offer a chance to reflect on one’s gratefulness.

Of course, Thanksgiving is celebrated in America in November (and October in Canada as l’Action de grâce). During Thanksgiving, it’s tradition to gather together loved ones and show gratitude for friendship and food. In Asia, the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival, or the Moon Festival, is widely popular. This festival is characterized by colorful lanterns—which are meant to act as guidance toward prosperity and fortune—delicious mooncakes, and fun games. The Mid-Autumn Festival is held in the eighth lunar month—which falls between our September and October—in the middle of harvest season and when the ancient Chinese believed the moon was at its brightest.

The meaning of the fall harvest is different in every culture, but the common theme remains the same. Fall harvest is a time of rejoicing and giving thanks. We hope you’ll reflect on the effort of farmers to bring you delicious food and the timeless beauty of this season.

Coastal Expeditions offers nature tours, kayak rentals, paddleboard rentals, island tours, kid-friendly tours and chances to explore the Lowcountry! Check out our various offerings and find which one suits you and your adventurous spirit! Our tours are led by knowledgeable, approachable naturalists and sea captains who are eager to answer your questions! Read up new experiences being offered by Coastal Expeditions on this blog. Until next time, readers. Get out there and explore! Adventure awaits!