The Summerland Advocate-Messenger - Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community

It's 55 degrees this September morning and I'm greeting the day with a cup of hot cocoa. I'm a cocoa fan rather than a cup of hot coffee.

Despite the cool temperature I have my kitchen window open as I peer outside at the flower garden. Crickets can be heard singing a serenade which I hope is their goodby song. Of course their song also means goodbye to the bright, warm summer days.

The plants are transitioning into fall as some of them have lost their growing vigor. Yet others seem to blend in with the change in the fall color palette.

I planted for Fall this spring. I have a row of French marigolds to add a touch of gold/orange color. The dreamland zinnias bloom in numerous colors but I think the orange toned ones seem to stand out. I've added to their color hue by placing some fall garden art close by.

There are various sizes of carved wood pumpkins painted a warm shade of orange, orange toned gazing globes and a garden flag painted with a large pumpkin.

The flower shed is sporting its metal pumpkin hanger while on the other side of the door a bright gold sun hangs smiling across the fall scene.

More wood pumpkins have been placed on garden benches.

All I need now is a stack of wood set ablaze in the fire ring and I can curl up under a blanket on the patio with my cocoa.

I do love fall.

The season is also a time for a summer garden report card.

I feel like a student as I look out my kitchen window into the garden. I'm still learning. I continue to discover knowledge

about the garden whether it is flowers or vegetables.

Perhaps I'm still learning about Mother Nature and what she decides each season, growing or otherwise.

While some things still look great outside, others have struggled all summer. I've received phone calls from one of my daughters asking what has happened to her petunias.

I honestly don't know what to say as I too have had different experiences this year in the garden.

The never-fail wave petunias caused me some grief. I haven't planted them for years, but some disease visited the plants. I had to pull one out leaving a bare spot in the bed. I left the plant as long as I dared but finally it had to go.

The other waves didn't spread as far as planned but now their dark purple blooms are very pretty. I, of course, went to Dr. Internet for the petunia problem and despite trimming back decided to take the drastic measure needed of destroying the plant along with a neighboring coneflower with the same symptoms. You learn even though sometimes it is painful.

I also learned in my beloved pumpkin patch. I need to be more vigilant on spraying for bugs. They won this year and my could-have-been-fun harvest was a disaster.

I scouted the patch all summer so anxious for the time to pluck out the orange, light green and white pumpkins. So it goes and if I need pumpkins I will be visiting a vendor who had better luck than I did.

My garden report card wasn't great in some areas, but there was an A+ when it came to the fingerling potatoes we planted.

Wow, what a harvest.

They are delicious roasted and finished to a crunchy skin on the outside. They were new to our garden and definitely will be a repeat plant on another year.

So the garden report card wasn't all bad. I just need to keep trying next year. Until then it's time to enjoy my hot cocoa looking out my kitchen window.