Secret Vistas –
By Glynn Wilson –
PATAPSCO VALLEY STATE PARK, Md. – As the sun went down on Sunday, May 3, I was walking my dog Jefferson around the outer loop of the campground along the ridge top and noticed the full moon coming up over the horizon. It was so orange it looked like a pumpkin.
By the time we made it back to the campsite and I got the big lens on the tripod and the Nikon hooked up, some of the sun’s reflective glow had faded, but I decided to snap some photos anyway. When you shoot through the trees, the limbs and leaves almost make it look like a jack-o-lantern.
Full Corn Planting Moon: Glynn Wilson
American Indians called the full moon in May the Full Corn Planting Moon, because this is the time of year to plant maize, a crop we found out about from the Native Americans when we got here from Europe a few hundred years ago.
Other names for it are the Full Flower Moon, since flowers are abundant everywhere during this time, and the Milk Moon.
Full Moon names date back to Native Americans in what is now the northern and eastern United States. The tribes kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to each recurring full Moon. Their names were applied to the entire month in which each occurred. There was some variation in the Moon names, but in general, the same ones were current throughout the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior.
European settlers followed that custom and created some of their own names. Since the lunar month is only 29 days long on the average, the full Moon dates shift from year to year.
See the Farmer’s Almanac for more information.
As you can see, the dogwoods and redbud trees are now in full bloom in eastern Maryland, with day time highs in the low 70s and the night time lows in the 50s.
Patapsco Campsite No. 2
The white-tailed deer are always around, feeding on the vegetation at the edge of the campground.
Patapsco White-Tailed Deer: Glynn Wilson
Another shot from Monday night.
Full Corn Planting Moon in May in Maryland: Glynn Wilson
