In stories from cold countries, life in nature always begins in the spring. In the summer, everything is fresh and blooming, in autumn the fruit ripens and the world sinks in sadness and chill, and in winter everything is still or dead - until it is time to wake up again in the spring. In the land of Israel, the order is completely different. Our spring is very short, during which bloom is at its peak; most of the plants stop their activity for the summer, except for the ripening of fruit, and it is at the end of Elul and at the beginning of Tishrei that change occurs in our entire landscape.

You can feel almost at once that the day has indeed shortened. Around Rosh Hashana the Equinox occurs. The nights become not only longer but also cooler. Toward evening we see floating clouds and beautiful sunsets - the most beautiful sunsets of the year.

As the great heat falls, the autumnal bloom awakens in the trees, bushes, and other plants, and here is the place to discover the secret: Besides the spring blooming season, which is familiar to us all, there is also a blooming period around Tishrei, and for other plants it is just as important: the summer makes the trees stop growing, and if it were not for the autumn bloom it would have been such a long break, that the tree couldn't have withstand it. In the Arab and desert regions, there is no bloom during the Tishrei period - that is why there the trees and trees species in these areas are so numbered.

Plants of bulbs and tuber also feel the change: a few (squill and lily) bloom, even though outside it is still very dry. Others begin preparing at the depths of the soil, developing the buds inside the bulb, taking out the first roots and preparing to break out after the rain.