12 October 2025

All Fallow Rea.

In Anglo-Saxon, the word for the colour of autumn leaves is fealo. It survives in modern English in the name of fallow deer, where is was used to describe the reddish-brown colour of their fur. The description of arable land left uncultivated as fallow comes from a completely different derivation.

Yet, on an autumn day, the reddish-gold leaves of autumn come into their own along the Rea, because it has been left alone.