Early November 1598.
The end of autumn is approaching.
As the weather gets colder, fishing conditions worsen and the sea becomes dangerous. Fishermen finish their sailing for the year and rest at home. They probably won't go out on their boats until around February next year.
Instead, ships loaded with Shine Muscat and various grapes set sail for England.
The cold late autumn sea is both an environment conducive to freezing people to death and good for maintaining the freshness of fruit.
At the same time, it was also the end of the season for sowing crops that would grow throughout winter.
With the medieval three-field system still in place, wheat and rye sowing was ending in some places while barley and lentil harvests were finishing in others. One-third of the land lies fallow.