The 'Dog Days' of summer are here

Unfortunately, our summer has pretty much flown by. If we could only slow the days down once the temperature hits 75, we’d be in business.

Our weather has been very unpredictable lately. The average high at this time of year is about 84. I guess that could be right as one week we’ll have 94 degree days and the next week we’ll have them at 74. Strange.

Coleus plants are some of my favorites. They make great winter house plants and really put on a show in the summer outdoors. My current favorite is called Peter’s Wonder. It can take quite a bit of summer sunshine and responds by developing a lot of hot pink in its frilly leaves and will grow 18 to 20 inches tall.

Coleus are classified as tender perennials but grown as annuals outdoors in our area. In containers, they can be used as the “thriller,” meaning the tallest plant. They don’t like to be excessively dry or over watered. Their tiny flower shoots are usually blue. Most people clip them off so the plant’s energy goes to producing the fancy leaves instead.

Gladiolas have been blooming for a while now. If you cut the tall flowers to put into a vase in the house, be sure to leave as much greenery as possible. This will build up the bulb in order to produce next summer’s blossom. These same bulbs can be dug up, kept over winter and grown for many years.

Lots of us enjoy saving seeds. Some of the early bloomers produced their seeds already. Foxgloves are in this category. Even if you missed gathering them, some will have dropped to the ground and hopefully, new baby plants will pop up soon.

Annual poppies produce big seedpods. As soon as they get dry and rattle when shaken, clip them off. Spread them out onto a large pan with sides and pop them open. The seeds are very small. Toss the shells and pour the seeds into a container which can be tightly sealed. Spread some of the seeds where you want them to bloom next year. Any extras can be stored in the refrigerator or given to a friend.

Be sure to tie up any large dahlia blossoms. For indoor enjoyment, it is recommended you seal the bottom of each stem by holding it over a flame of some sort for a few seconds. This will stop the sap from clogging the stem. Otherwise, water uptake will not happen and the flower will wilt in no time. This same treatment is required of cut poppy and daffodil blossoms.

Most of us enjoy eating corn on the cob this time of the year. Did you know the average cob contains about 800 kernels? That’s a lot of “good eating.”

Another interesting fact: Idaho grows about 72 billion potatoes every year.

I liked this one: “In every family tree, you’ll find a few nuts.” Fits my family.

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Elaine Cerny has gardened most of her life, starting in 4-H. She has belonged to garden clubs in three states and is currently serving as secretary for the River City Gardeners Club in Post Falls. Her column appears in The Press every other Sunday from early March until late October.