The scorching hot summer was coming to an end. In its place came beautiful Autumn with her easy, unhurried, measured pace. The last autumn flowers—asters, dahlias and chrysanthemums—delighted the eye with their beauty. The trees transformed each day, changing their foliage from green to burgundy-red, fiery-orange and bright yellow.
Autumn is harvest time. And the riot of colours that autumn possesses touched the apple orchard as well. Apple trees grow in neat, well-tended rows in this garden. Back in early spring, when they were in bloom, spreading their fragrance all around, they had formed fruit buds, from which fruits soon developed. Little showers watered the earth, moistened the leaves, and the apples filled with juice, grew and ripened.
The saplings, having gathered new strength, began their battle for the harvest. They stretched their branches towards the sun, and the apples gleamed in its rays. And there they were—ripe and fragrant fruits hanging on the trees, asking to be picked. After all, they had tried so hard to grow to delight us with their taste.
Day after day, Uncle Moose walked through his garden, observing the growth of the trees and the ripening of the apples. He realised that he couldn't manage to gather such a large harvest of apples on his own. After thinking it over, he came to the conclusion that he needed to invite helpers for such an important task. The main helpers for Uncle Moose became young squirrels, young rabbits and young bears.
The next morning, the garden gates opened, and a group of excited little animals entered the territory of the apple kingdom. Uncle Moose stood before them.
Have you come to work in the garden?
Yes!
They answered together.
Excellent! Thank you for responding to my request for help.
Come along, I'll show you how to gather the harvest. For this we'll need a ladder, because many apples grow at great heights, even at the very top of the trees. We'll also need two baskets to put the picked apples in.
Here before you are three types of baskets: small, medium and large. What do you think—which would be most convenient for putting apples in as soon as they're picked from the tree?
Which? Which? Which?
The little animals whispered amongst themselves, not daring to make a decision.
I'll explain! A small basket will hold very few apples, only two or three. A large basket will hold many, but it will be very heavy to carry. So here's the conclusion: it will be most convenient to gather apples in a medium-sized basket. Now, each of you take a comfortable basket!
And each helper took themselves a comfortable basket.
And to interest you even more,
Uncle Moose continued.
I've decided to organise a fun competition. Look here: in my garden grow apples of different varieties—they differ in taste and colour. So I've decided to divide you into three teams.
The young rabbits made up the first team. They were given the task of gathering red apples.
The young squirrels formed the second team and received the task of gathering yellow apples. The young bears became members of the third team. Their goal was to gather green apples.
Why, that's just like a traffic light!
Exclaimed the fluffy red squirrel.
Yes, yes, yes! A traffic light!
The other little animals chimed in.
Now get ready, face the garden and look at it carefully, admire its beauty.
Look, look.
Exclaimed the young rabbit, clapping his paws.
The apples, like decorations on a Christmas tree, delight the eye with their many colours.
I see.
Said Uncle Moose.
You've charged yourselves with positive emotions, and now, before we start work, I want to treat you to apples. I've washed them and I'm happy to offer them to you to try. Eating apples helps reduce the risk of various illnesses. And besides, whoever eats an apple a day rarely, if ever, visits the doctor!
The little animals happily began to crunch on pieces of fragrant and delicious apples.
And after refreshing themselves, they scattered to their sections and enthusiastically set to work.
The baskets filled quickly, and work was in full swing. The little animals became so absorbed in the apple-gathering competition that they didn't notice the danger threatening the harvest. Only the smallest young bear spotted that some apples had holes in them, and from these holes little worms were peeking out.
Oh, what a fat one.
Said the young bear.
Who? Who?
The little animals came running at his call.
Look here—a worm. Let's pull it out of there.
And he began to grab at the worm with his paw, but it hid inside the apple.
No, we can't manage this ourselves.
Said the squirrel.
It's not alone here; there are worms in other apples too. We need to call someone for help. But who?
I know who we can call to save the apples!
Exclaimed the rabbit.
The birds will help us. I've seen how they destroy pests with their beaks.
And they all shouted loudly:
Birds, birds, help us! Free the apples from the worms!
The birds heard the call, flew over, quickly did their work and thus freed the apples from unwanted inhabitants. The animals thanked them, and Uncle Moose treated them to ripe apples.
The harvest gathering continued, and the baskets filled and filled with colourful fruit. All three teams did an excellent job with their task.
And indeed, like a big traffic light, the baskets with red, yellow and green apples stood out at the edge of the garden.
Now we need to carefully pack the gathered fruit into boxes for storage.
Said Uncle Moose.
For this we select apples with a diameter of 6.5–7 cm and weighing about 150–200 grams. I have some small garden scales for this purpose. We wrap each apple in paper and lay it in the box stem-side up, in a single layer. This way they'll keep better and longer, right through to spring.
What will we do with the remaining apples, for example, the red ones?
Asked the rabbit.
We'll make jam from them.
And from the yellow apples?
Asked the squirrel.
From the yellow apples we'll make compote and preserves.
What will we make from the green apples?
Asked the young bear.
And from the green apples we'll make the most delicious juice.
Answered Uncle Moose.
You see, each of your teams is responsible not only for gathering apples of a certain colour, but also for processing and preserving them.
The little animals worked splendidly. Tired but pleased with their work and its results, they sat down to rest and at the same time enjoy some sweet and tasty apples.
Time flew swiftly, and the first shadows of dusk began to fall on the garden. Uncle Moose thanked the little animals for their work, and as a sign of his gratitude, gave each one a basket of apples. But he filled the basket not with fruit of just one colour, but with different colours, so it would be not only tasty but also beautiful.
And besides, my little helpers, I suggest that tomorrow, when you've rested, you draw a basket of apples and call your drawing 'Gathering the Harvest'.
In this way, you'll preserve your memories of the time spent in the garden and the impressions you received here, not only in your memory but also on paper.
Yes!
The rabbits, squirrels and bears answered together in unison.
We'll do just that.
Thank you for inviting us and for the treats!
The little animals said goodbye and went home. Uncle Moose also went to rest.
And only a gentle breeze remained to wander through the garden between the trees and swirl the fallen leaves about, as if playing with them in a game only it understood.
Read original fairy tales and you'll not only feel uplifted, but also learn much that's useful!
