26 September 1853 – 2 October 1853

Wednesday. In Concord. The elm leaves are falling. ‘The fringed gentian was out before Sunday; was (some of it) withered then, says Edith Emerson.

Thursday. Cool and windy. Wind roars in the trees. Viola cucullata, Aster puniceus and lon- gifolius still. Solidago speciosa out in Hubbard’s Swamp since I went away, — say ten days ago. This must be a late one, then. Diplopappus linariifolius, Aster undulatus, and a few small ones. -Red oak acorns fall. ‘The witch-hazel at Lee’s Cliff, in a fair situa- tion, has but begun to blossom; has not been long out, so that I think it must be later than the gentian. Its leaves are yellowed. Barberry ripe. Sumachs and maples changed, but not trees generally. Bluets still. Viburnum Lentago berries yet. Lambkill blossoms again.

Friday. Saw a large flock of black ducks flying northwest in the form of a harrow.

Saturday. Went a-barberrying by boat to Conantum, carrying Ellen, Edith, and Eddie. Grape- vines, curled, crisped, and browned by the frosts, are now more conspicuous than ever. Some grapes still hang on the vines. Got three pecks of barberries. Huckleberries begin to redden. Robins and blue- birds collect and flit about. Flowers are scarce.

Sunday. The gentian in Hubbard’s Close is frost-bitten extensively. As the [witch-] hazel is raised above frost and can afford to be later, for this reason also I think itis so. ‘The white pines have scarcely begun at all to change here, though a week ago last Wednesday they were fully changed at Bangor. ‘There is fully a fortnight’s difference, and methinks more. The [witch-] hazel, too, was more forward there. There are but few and faint autumnal tints about Walden yet. The smooth sumach is but a dull red.