Cooler Weather Companions

When summer's final sputter of temperatures in the 80s and 90s finally yielded to cooler weather in late October, I celebrated. What a relief to swing open the patio door and realize I was no longer walking into an oven. As I continue to survey the plantings I lost during those long months of relentless heat, I am actually quite amazed at what is left.

A tuberous begonia, its pot placed sight unseen beneath a myrtle tree, seems to have popped up out of nowhere. I'm surprised by its large leaves and vibrant blooms on sturdy stalks.

The cannas in the front yard are finally stretching toward the sky — and flowering.

My favorite fence climber, a David Austin rose, is throwing out canes and sprouting buds — enough for a gorgeous fragrant bouquet of fragile multi-petaled blooms.

Seems to me that both gardeners and gardens feel better, look better and perform better in cooler weather. I know that I do. Heat stress is dehydrating regardless of how much water is applied to plants or how thick the mulch in flowerbeds. More often than not, buds wither or don't produce at all. Leaves are more vulnerable to insects. Pollen becomes non-viable. Personally, I've watched not only my vegetables bolt and go to seed in hot weather but have seen the roses pout as buds dry up and drop off and the delicate velvety petals singe.

So, don't blame your plants' performance this summer on the drought. Instead, blame the heat. But keep your eyes open before frost comes. You just might find a couple cooler weather companions in your own garden.

Tuberous begonia. (photos by Launa Herrmann)