Cool Weather Perks Up Gardens

These colorful nasturtiums are flourishing now that the punishing heat of Summer 2008 is over.

Other plants are making one last show before frost, which may be days or weeks away.

This is also the time when spring shrubs may flower out of season.

Another end-of-summer sight is this praying mantis that is ready to lay eggs.

The eggs will overwinter in a nondescript brown case attached to a twig or some other firm base. My neighbor and I found one last spring attached to a chain-link fence. Next spring, hundreds of tiny mantids will emerge. Adults live only one season. We have enjoyed encountering these fascinating creatures in our urban yard this summer.

--Bernice Paglia