Wednesday 5 September 2007

The First Chestnut



In the quiet of an early September morning
on chestnut tree lane,
a harbinger of autumn swinging itself free,
landing in front of
sandal-clad feet
with a thud:

The first chestnut of the season,
in her shiny marron finery,
smiling
next to her split open
moss-green spiky parachute,
exuding fragrance
of marrons glacés.



*
Click here
for
Chestnuts through the seasons.

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21 comments:

  1. I love your pictures ...It smells like fall is coming ..

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  2. Ha, ha, when I first looked at that top photo I thought that it was some strange slug or snail coming out of it's shell.

    The slugs of Autumn are here...

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  3. Mélanie:
    Nine degrees and raining raining raining = clear and wet message, isn't it? ;-)

    Bruce:
    One would hope that a slug would fall on her feet first. *squoooooshhhhhh* :-)

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  4. OH YUM!
    Knock your socks off pictures
    Lovely poem to Fall..

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  5. Holy Moly, those look like Deku Seeds from the Legend of Zelda Wind Waker game!

    (too random?)

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  6. Great macro of the nut. I think I have to go out in the backyard and see if the chestnuts hanging over the fence look like these. Thanks for the reminder.

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  7. PARIS BREAKFASTS:
    Carol, I got these before the rain started and photographed them with the last rays of sun before the big rainclouds took over.
    Thinking of marrons glacés and of you was a natural, btw.
    ;-)

    Brian in Oxford:
    You are right! ;-) But beware:
    It takes lots of Lon Lon Milk before can put these in your sling shot! :-)

    photowannabe:
    My little Cybershot was at the camera clinic over the weekend, so now I am photographing everything in my way (worse than before *g*). Those sweet people at the Sony repairs shop here in Vienna installed a new Zeiss lens and I had my camera back within 2 1/2 half working days! So glad, because now they are only selling those eetsy-bitsy-tiny models.
    I am going to check for chestnut photos on your side of the pond.
    ;-)

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  8. Succulent photograph and poem to match. Thank you for kicking off the autumn season in Style, Merisi Style!

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  9. I saw some today and walked right past them; didn't even think to take a photo. Your photos are fantastic!

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  10. Kind of makes me think the Deku Scrubs are more dangerous than I thought...

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  11. I agree with Paris breakfasts....
    Your Photos are simply fantastic.

    I am SO busy at the Moment, yet to come here and see September.. brings a smile to my dial

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  12. Wonderful photo of the chestnut! Love you new blog design as well!

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  13. paris parfait:
    There are so many chestnut trees in my neighborhood, and I had been waiting for days for the first ones to drop. ;-) I collect single beauties throughout the fall and then use them to decorate the Thanksgiving table.

    Incurable Insomniac:
    Oh yes, never underestimate the little spiky ones. ;-)

    simon:
    Thank you. :-)
    I hope spring will bring you some more time for yourself.

    tongue in cheek:
    Thank you, Corey!
    Somebody special forced me to finally change the background. ;-)

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  14. Those are absolutely magnificent photos of chestnuts. I've always loved the texture and the color of chestnuts and your photos have captured both wonderfully.

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  15. Suldog:
    Thank you. :-)
    I share your love of chestnuts. They are like fall's ambassadors, fitting symbols of the season upon us.

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  16. So that's what a chestnut looks like! Believe it or not I've never seen one before. :-)

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  17. I haven't seen many chestnut trees for a number of years now, and I and my husband were just talking about that. I recall enjoying the trees and the nuts as a child. Your photo presents them in a rich, polished brown--very nice.

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  18. ANN:
    I am glad I could bring them closer to you. ;-)

    KATE:
    I remember that the American Chestnut was all but obliterated by a blight brought to the American shores by Chinese Chestnuts. Check The American Chestnut Foundation's website, they once had a "Adopt a Tree" programm.

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  19. That last shot is just spectacular ....

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  20. The latest post at Hyde DP is Autumn Chestnuts and I've included links to some other chestnut postings including this one.

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