Agriculture

A Change of Season

By Jodi Ashton · October 24, 2026

As I was driving today, the beauty of fall's colors struck me. And it caught me off guard, because I'll be honest: I have always said I hate fall. Not the colors, and not the cooler mornings, but what comes after. Every falling leaf felt like a countdown to winter, the cold, and the short, dark days.

This year, I'm changing my perspective. Change is necessary, for the land and for me.

The colors

There's a reason fall is so beautiful, and it's a little like a reveal. All summer, the green chlorophyll in a leaf hides the yellows and oranges that were there all along. As the days shorten and the nights cool, the green fades and the hidden colors finally show. The brightest reds are made fresh in the fall.

Here in Colorado, that means whole mountainsides of aspens turning gold at once. Some things only show their true colors when the season changes.

The busiest time on the ranch

On a ranch, fall is anything but slow.

Most ranches calve in the spring, so fall is weaning time: calves born in late winter and spring are separated from their mothers and sent on to the next stage. Some herds calve in the fall instead, so for them it's a season of new life. Either way, it's a season of sorting, shipping, and hard decisions about which heifers stay home to build the herd.

It's also the last cutting of hay stacked in the barn, fences checked, water lines readied, and everything put in order before the first hard freeze, which in Denver usually comes around early October.

The ground rests

Then comes the part I've always overlooked. After a full season of growing, the land rests.

The grass goes dormant. Fields that fed us all summer lie quiet under frost and snow. Freezing and thawing loosen the soil, and the winter snowpack becomes the water that brings everything back in spring. Rest isn't wasted time for the land. It's how the land gets ready for what's next.

That's true for people, too.

Seasons are a gift

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1

I used to see fall as an ending. Now I see it as part of a rhythm we were given on purpose: a time to grow, a time to harvest, a time to rest, and a time to begin again. Without fall and winter, there's no spring.

So this year, I'm not counting down to the cold. I'm noticing the gold on the aspens, the work of the season, and the quiet that follows. I'm trusting that the rest is doing its work.

And if you see me in January wearing three sweaters, or hear me complaining that I'm cold, please remind me of my change in perspective.

Jodi Ashton, Founder & Managing Director

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Photo: A cottonwood in full fall gold, Colorado. Photo by Jodi Ashton.