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Friday 1 October 2021

October - fun facts and more

Welcome October the tenth month of the year.


October glows on every cheek,
October shines in every eye,
While up the hill and down the dale
Her crimson banners fly.
–Elaine Goodale Eastman (1863–1953)

The Leaves They Are a-Changin’
With the autumnal equinox in late September, many leaves begin to change, but have you ever wondered why do leaves change colours? Did you know that Autumn/Fall’s vivid colours are actually hidden underneath summer’s green? The main reason for the colour change is not autumn’s chilly weather, but light—or rather, the lack of it. The green colour of leaves disappears when photosynthesis (from sunlight) slows down and the chlorophyll breaks down. Trees with a lot of direct sunlight will produce red leaves, while other trees may turn yellow, orange, or brown.

About October
Sitting square in between September and November, October is the tenth month of the Gregorian calendar.

October is seen by many to be a time of real seasonal change, both in the northern and southern hemispheres. For those in the north, autumn is really kicking into gear and the nights are getting cooler. The harvest festivals are over, and the nights are getting longer and longer by the day.

October is unsurprisingly quite different for those who live in the southern hemisphere. Spring has already bloomed in all its glory, and life is becoming more and more pleasant by the day.

The Anglo-Saxons’ name for October was Winterfylleth, with its name containing the words for winter and full moon respectively. It was named this because winter was said to begin from the first full moon of the month.

The Saxons had a name for October, too. Theirs was Wyn Monath, which translated into “wine month” because it was the time of the year for making wine. 


October’s birthstone is the Opal. The opal comes in a myriad of striking colours that often seem to swirl together and is a symbol of both faithfulness, purity, and hope.

October has two strikingly different birth flowers, the pastel-hued cosmos, and the radiant marigold flowers. The cosmos flower is representative of the joy one finds in peace and love, as well as representing peace. The marigold, otherwise known as the calendula, is said to be a symbol of tranquillity, grace, and grief.

Octobers star signs - those born in October can be born under one of two very different star signs. If you’re born before October 23rd, then you have the sign of Libra. Those born on October 23rd or later have the sign of Scorpio. Libras are said to value harmony and diplomacy and are said to be both intelligent and kind. Scorpios are quite different, valuing trust and honesty above other things, as well as being quite intense yet imaginative people.

A UK tradition!
The Twyford church in Hampshire, UK has a tradition of ringing its bells every year on October 7th. The origin of this tradition goes back to the 18th Century when a local resident called William David became lost in heavy fog while riding home at night. Much to his luck, he heard the church bells toll and from this, he managed to find his way home. As a form of thanks, he left some money to the church when he died so that the church could continue to ring their bells on October 7th every year, just in case there were any other lost travellers. Unfortunately the funds ran out long ago but the tradition remains.

Keep an eye on the skies!
If you live in the northern hemisphere, you’ll be rewarded for keeping your eyes to the skies in October, as the Draconid Meteor Shower can be seen. It contains a single comet that is visible exclusively in the northern hemisphere between October 6th and 10th.

An even more impressive meteor shower that is visible in both hemispheres is the Orionid meteor shower, which runs from October 2nd until early November. It is named after Orion as it is usually visible in the same part of the sky as the constellation. At the peak of the meteor shower, as many as 20 meteors are visible every hour.


The Full Hunter’s Moon
October’s full Moon, known as the Hunter’s Moon, arrives on Wednesday, October 20. Like September’s Harvest Moon, the Hunter’s Moon is closely tied to the autumnal equinox. Learn more about October’s full Moon here

Folklore for the season
  • When deer are in a grey coat in October, expect a hard winter.
  • When birds and badgers are fat in October, expect a cold winter.
  • When berries are many in October expect a hard winter.
  • Much rain in October, much wind in December.
  • A warm October means a cold February.
  • If the October moon comes without frost, expect no frost till the moon of November. 
  • In October dung your field, and your land its wealth shall yield.
As you can see, October is a pretty fantastic time of the year, and remember there are some tasty foods in season during October. Things like leafy kale and leeks, so nice to add to healthy green soups and stews. Of course bright butternut squash adds colour to easy traybakes. Don't forget that once you’ve carved your Halloween pumpkin try cooking with it too – roast in generous wedges or bake into sweet pumpkin pie. British apples and pears are also in season throughout October, more to read with lots of recipe ideas here


No matter where you are in the world, I wish you a happy month of October, and if you know any fun facts about this month do please share them in the comments.
The above from here and here and here

Readers, we bring a variety of articles, studies etc. plus recent news/views and recipe ideas to this blog, we hope something for everyone to read and enjoy. Please note, not all recipes may be suitable for you. If you may have any food allergies, or underlying health issues these must always be taken into account. If you are a diabetic and not sure how certain foods may affect your blood sugars, test is best, i.e. use your meter.

All the best Jan

33 comments:

William Kendall said...

I'll have to keep an eye out for those meteors.

Elephant's Child said...

Love that bell ringing tradition - and hope to see a meteor or two.

Tom said...

...interesting October facts.

Christine said...

Happy Ocotboer!

Christine said...

I meant Happy October, sorry for the typos.

J.P. Alexander said...

Ten un genial mes, y un buen fin de semana.

Angie's Recipes said...

Happy Fall! November will be here very soon...so enjoy the glorious October!!

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

I always enjoy reading your monthly factoids. I will look for the meteor showers. It was interesting to read about the bell ringing on the 7th, too. Happy October to you two.

Margaret D said...

Interesting read about October.

Giorgio said...

I've enjoyed your post about the tenth month of the year. There were many interesting information, such as the "wine month" from old Saxon language. People who live on the 42nd parallelel, people make wine in October and olive oil in November :-)

You're right about the folklore for the season, as in many countries located in the northern emisphere, people say "a warm October means a cold February".

With regards to the food that we can find in October, I have heard chestnuts are good for cholesterol levels. Isn't it?

Enjoy the fall colours in your country. Thanks for sharing such a great article!

linda said...

Happy October, some interesting facts I'll have to look out for those meteor's. For me October is the gateway to colder weather which I'm not looking forward to at all. Have a great weekend.

Aritha V. said...

O, this is a pretty post. Interesting. Yes we call "oktober" the wine month. In my language wijnmaand. That name comes indeed from long ago, when the Netherlands used the French calendar. See below

The French Republican calendar (French: calendrier républicain français), also commonly called the French Revolutionary calendar (calendrier révolutionnaire français), was a calendar created and implemented during the French Revolution, and used by the French government for about 12 years from late 1793 to 1805

Valerie-Jael said...

Fun post today. Love the cat and moon! Happy October, Valerie

roughterrain crane said...

Two equinoxes are holidays here. Autumn one especially makes us feel the change of seasons. Happy weekend to you.

Hilly Nicolay said...

An educational blog.
The vegetables and fruits make it cozy.

Greetings to you,
Hilly

carol l mckenna said...

Gorgeous photo to welcome October and love the cat one too ~ Xo

Living in the moment,

A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

Breathtaking said...

Hello,:=) What an interesting post with much I didn't know about October. The light changing the colour of the leaves was a surprising fact, On clear nights I will also be looking out for those Meteors, and I loved the story of the tradition of the bell ringing.

Louca por porcelana said...

Lovely and fun post! Happy October!Hugs and blessings.

happyone said...

Enjoyed reading all the interesting Oct facts. I love this month.

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Happy October! It is one of my favorites months of the year as I love autumn and cooler weather.

NatureFootstep said...

I like fall. It has a mood I like. And the colors of course. :)

Conniecrafter said...

Happy October to you too, I love all the traditions and folklore :) I like how the church keeps up the tradition of ringing the bells. Nothing like seeing all the leaves turn :)

Linda P said...

I've learnt some new facts here. I like the bell ringing tradition story. I shall look out for the Hunter's Moon. We're still enjoying our harvested produce including the last of the chard. Happy October to you and yours!

My name is Erika. said...

I always enjoy these first of the month posts. This one was just as interesting as your others. It's interesting how many much older cultures saw October as the start of winter. It make sense since harvests are wrapping up and colder weather arrives. Happy new month Jan.

Jules said...

Because of the dry summer we're predicted a colourful display of autumn leaves this year. I'm looking forward to it. X

Sue said...

And it's my birthday and the heating goes on this month! Take care and have a very happy weekend, Sue xx

Rose said...

I so love that verse at the beginning...I had to send it to a friend.

Jenn Jilks said...

Hooray for October! I love the shoulder seasons.

Divers and Sundry said...

Informative, thanks. I love October!

Ananka said...

It is certainly a lot colder up here now. I love the month of October because I love Hallowe'en, I have lots of decorations up and fun planned for the little one all month. I made spiced pumpkin cookies today, little one loved them. It took me ages to gut the pumpkin, then cook it and then puree it haha!

This week I'll be doing some kinda pumpkin soup.

Jeanie said...

This is one of my favorite of your monthly posts -- October has so much to offer. I learned a lot from this one, Jan -- and I really love this name: Winterfylleth -- I'm not sure how to pronounce the second half but it sounds very poetic and lovely. I think I might be referring to this one again!

sandy said...

i like your monthly posts. this is a good one.

Teresa said...

Feliz mes de octubre para ti. Besos.