Fields of gold

I love my country roads this time of year... 

(Although I'll admit to taking these pics several weeks ago.) 

Fields of gold everywhere. 

Some farmers get in some double crop soybeans after they harvest wheat. Those fields are later to harvest than the regular early soybeans and benefited from the later heavy rains. They actually colored up nicely  into gorgeous green n gold.

These neat n orderly fields of straw bales mesmerized me after harvest this summer... 

Straw is the leftover stems of wheat. (or barley or oats) It's baled after the grains have been harvested with a combine. Now that cooler temps are here I love to see my critters nestled into deep fluffy stalls and nest boxes full of bright gold straw. 

Here you can see how farmers stagger their crops; rotating the heavy feeders, like corn, with soybeans which help fix nitrogen in the soil. The strips of hay, barley or wheat are woven into this tapestry to both conserve nutrients and minimize soil erosion from water run-off. Here in Maryland the state has a big focus on "nutrient management" to try to ease the pollution into the Chesapeake Bay. All horse and livestock owners as well as farmers must submit paperwork on their manure disposal and field  management. If you ask me, which nobody does,  getting suburban homeowners not to pave paradise and dump more concentrated chemicals on their lawns n flower beds would do far more good! I'm all for organic and less chemicals, but at least the farmers are producing for the rest of us. Chemicals just to keep yards pretty kinda bothers me. 

Just sayin'. Don't hate.

I cherish bright yellow flowers that I took for granted earlier in the year as more n more tan, brown n grey are creeping into my world...

Hope you're enjoying these last golden days!