Wave goodbye to the sun-soaked beaches and melting popsicles of summer, and say hello to fall leaves and a chill in the air. Grab your blanket and cozy up with a cup of tea to read five stories sure to get you in the mood for fall, from the inside story on growing giant pumpkins to why the heck we can’t settle on one name for this magical season.

Moving Stones Has a Magical Effect at This Secret Shrine in Scotland

by Daniela Castillo Gómez

Don’t let the Cailleach curse your autumn. Eight large stones sit in a field outside a hut in Scotland. The biggest one is as tall as local Norman Haddow’s knee, yet he lifts it with ease and brings it inside a small, turf-roofed building. He then goes back outside to collect the remaining rocks, returning them to the shrine. No one knows exactly how many there were when the tradition started, but today the collection comes in all different shapes and sizes. The large one is known as the Cailleach, a supernatural figure associated with Irish and Scottish folklore. She has different associations across various regions, but here in this glen, she watches over the harvest.

“It ensures that the year’s harvest is bountiful,” Haddow says. “The crops would fail next year if the Cailleach is not taken care of.”

<em>The Harvesters</em>, by Pieter Bruegel the Elder.
The Harvesters, by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Public Domain

Why Does the Season Before Winter Have Two Names?

by Dan Nosowitz

There is indecision about the season that comes before winter. Plants die, or seem to, but at the same time are at their most magnificent: Some produce a final burst of fruit, others turn vibrant colors. We are relieved at the end of a hot summer, and terrified of the long winter ahead. (At least those of us with seasonal affective disorder.) We celebrate these brief few weeks and also mourn the green times behind us. And we don’t even know what to call this weird time. Is it autumn or fall? Why does this season have two names?

This Italian City Is Obsessed With Squash

by Elena Valeriote

Pumpkin spice lattes may be few and far between in Italy, but for those gourd-lovers seeking to make the most of the season, there are few places more festive in fall than the northern Italian town of Ferrara. For centuries, pumpkins have grown especially well here thanks to the fertile soil and hospitable climate of the Po Valley, which remains the heart of the nation’s agriculture today. Before long, people began referring to residents of Ferrara as magnazoca, or “pumpkin eaters.”

<em>Zucca violina</em> has a rough peel, unlike butternut squash.
Zucca violina has a rough peel, unlike butternut squash. Elena Valeriote

In October, Our Night Sky Is Full of Scary Stories

by Rebecca Boyle

Stargazing is a calming, even meditative hobby, but many of the constellations we enjoy in our nocturnal contemplation are associated with antiquity’s most violent myths. Spooky season is a great time to learn some of the more bizarre stories. Stargazers in the Northern Hemisphere can find the demon star Algol, a murdered monster, and victims of vengeful gods.

The Massively Friendly World of Competitive Giant Pumpkin Growing

by Paula Mejia

Some stand tall and sturdy in their orange armor. Others seem lumpier, like balloons deflating one week after a birthday party. All of them, however, are immense. These giant pumpkins, which are on display at the New York Botanical Garden, belong to growers who compete to create the season’s largest gourds. Some of them weigh over 2,000 pounds; all of them required time, land, and obsessive attention to grow. But this is no cutthroat competition. In the charming world of competitive giant pumpkin growing, veterans and newcomers alike help each other get better.