Shine On, Harvest Moon, 2011

I finally caught some color in the sky and a yellow moon. The Harvest Moon always looks extra golden, round and fat as if it, too, is ready for harvest.

Last year on this day we had a full moon on this day, but in 2012, the September full moon doesn’t fall until September 29.

September’s full moon is called the Full Corn Moon for the time of harvesting corn, and also the Full Barley Moon for the harvest and threshing of barley, and the Fruit Moon for the ripening of fruit in both hemispheres, autumn fruits in the northern hemisphere, and spring fruits in the southern hemisphere. While each month’s moon keeps its particular name, the Harvest Moon is an additional name for the full moon nearest the autumnal equinox. What characterizes this moon as the Harvest is that, unlike other times of the year, the moon rises an average of 30 minutes later each day rather than the usual 50 minutes. That gives this string of days, about two weeks, more light in the evening as the full moon approaches, arrives and departs, so work days for harvesting can be longer.

Read about the Corn Moon and the Harvest Moon on the Farmer’s Almanac.