Putting a Little Fright into Autumn
By Veronica Ditko
An Accidental Anthropologist
Ah, it is fall again. The leaves have changed color and there is the sweet, wet smell of rotting leaves. Yards are decorated with corn, pumpkins, bales of hay, and…..scarecrows. How did scarecrow become a symbol of autumn? The vegetables and hay I understand – they are harvested in the fall. But scarecrows, where did that come from?
Since the start of agriculture many thousands of years ago, farmers have struggled with how demanding their neighbors can be. And by neighbors, I mean every insect, animal, and bird that likes plants, which is a lot of creatures to contend with. Just ask any organic farmer today.
One organic farmer I know said she let the animals eat freely during the summer, knowing they wouldn’t eat everything. But by the time fall came and the crops got much smaller, the woodchucks nearly wiped out all of her squash. Then this peace-loving woman started a full on war. But I digress.
The fact is animals aren’t dumb. They know good free food when they see it. Birds are exceptionally lucky that they have wings, handy in quick getaways from angry farmers. And birds especially like seeds, the babies for next year’s harvest, which are collected in the fall. Now you can see how much farmers hated (and still hate!) birds.
Some sources say the earliest a scarecrow was written about was in 1592. However, other sources say they go back to Ancient Egyptian times when farmers protected their wheat fields along the Nile. Similar tactics were recorded by Ancient Greeks, Ancient Romans, Japanese farmers, Medieval serfs, and Native Americans.
Scarecrows varied quite a bit. In Medieval Italy, skulls of animals were placed on top of poles, in Japan, fish bones. The Zuni in the American Southwest strung yucca cords around the fields, making continuous chains of scarecrows using animal hides, rags, and shoulder bones.
In England, names of scarecrows range from Jack A Lent to Mammet to Tattie Bogies (sounds a little like the Boogey Man!).
Scarecrows look a lot friendlier today, even cheery. There are a few Scarecrow festivals in the Midwest each fall. I wonder if these cutie-pies would actually keep the birds away. I mean, they are not called cutiecrows, now are they?
