The June Drop

When the orchard sighs and the boughs let go…

In early summer, as the sun strengthens and green turns to gold at the edges, many fruit trees, especially apples, pears and cherries begin a quiet shedding. This natural thinning is known as the June drop, a time when young, unripened fruitlets fall to the earth.

Though it may seem like a loss, this is the tree’s own wisdom. By letting go of the weaker or excess fruit, it ensures the energy goes into ripening the strongest and best. It's nature’s pruning, a quiet culling, not a sign of blight but of balance.

In old lore, this fall of fruit was read as omen and offering. Some country folk once said the spirits of the orchard came to collect their share, those fruits not meant for human hand. To interfere too much with the drop was to risk poor harvest or stir the ire of the green spirits.

In parts of the south, it's whispered that “what the tree casts in June, the fae take for feast.” And so, some would leave the fallen fruit where it lay for a time, a quiet gift to the unseen.

If you’re walking through orchard or hedge this month and see young fruit on the ground, remember: not all loss is waste. Sometimes it's wisdom.

-Woodlarking