Sadly, I couldn't find anyone who could slow the days down, so here we are in the latter half of August... already! Sad, but true. In order to savor all the summer you can, be sure to spend as much time outdoors as possible. I have a swing in my backyard that is getting a lot of use about now. It's a great place to relax in the shade with a good book and a glass of cold lemonade. Who am I kidding? Being a typical gardener, I barely get sat down and have to jump up and tend to something... this needs water, that needs deadheaded. You know what I mean.

The midsummer perennials are bursting with flowers now. I love the ones that have a very long bloom period and have quite a few good performers. These include:

1. Gloriosa daisies, aka black eyed Susans (rudbeckia): These develop tall sturdy stalks topped with large daisy shaped flowers which have a ring of brown around the center. The amount of brown varies, but they all blend together well.

2. Blanket flowers (gaillardia): These are usually red orange with a yellow edge and grow 12 to 15 inches tall. They start to bloom in July and don't let up until killed by a hard freeze. The secret is to deadhead them about once a week.

3. Coneflowers, (echinacea): Once considered wild flowers, they are now available in much more than the original lavender pink. New varieties are white and orange, even a strange green.

4. Cranesbills, (perennial geraniums): These come in a variety of colors. They have a big flush of blossoms in the spring and then continue to bloom all summer. If they get too tall, just cut them down and they'll return to bloom for the rest of the season.

5. Reblooming daylilies: Varieties such as Stella d' Oro and Happy Returns produce flowers all summer unlike the older types which have a short but showy bloom period.

6. Two others that have bloomed all summer and are still going strong are the fern-leafed bleeding hearts and yellow corydalis.

Most of these perennials will produce nice offspring. Any extras can be pulled out and tossed onto the compost heap. Better yet, move them to another location or give them to a lucky friend.

Annual vines of all types are looking good now. Some of my favorites include cardinal vine, black-eyed susan vine and cup and saucer vine. Also, worthy of mention are morning glories as these can be spectacular and are very easy to grow. Seeds can be found in a huge variety of colors and patterns. There is a relative called moonflower vine which has huge white flowers that you can actually watch as they slowly open in late afternoon. The fragrant flowers stay open all night, then fade in midmorning to be replaced by new blooms later in the day.

I need to mention that morning glories have taken a bad rap for years as people sometimes confuse them with that dreaded weed, field bindweed. These are not the same plant at all and are not invasive.

On a more sinister subject, we all have many varieties of spiders in and around our homes. They are mostly good guys as they eat a huge amount of bugs. I leave them be if they're outdoors while keeping an eye out for the real villain, the hobo spider. These are the most hazardous spiders commonly found in our area. For many years their nasty bites were blamed on the brown recluse spider, but in 1986 the hobo was found to be the real culprit.

To recognize hobo spiders, they are medium sized with long legs and have very distinctive chevron strips on their abdomens. The males have what look like tiny boxing gloves at the tips of their antennae. They're most likely seen on the ground as they're very poor climbers. I'm not sure I've ever seen one, but keep an eye out just the same.

As this is such a good time to trade irises with your friends, be on the lookout for one of the variegates types. These come with either yellow and green or green and white foliage. These beautiful leaves are their main feature and it's a good one because they look great in the flowerbeds from spring through fall. They do bloom, but the flowers aren't as large as the newer hybrid varieties. Still, they have something those big flowered guys lack. A great smell. Some people describe it as smelling like grape Kool-Aid.

When it comes to vegetable gardens, there seem to be some clear cut winners and losers this season. Lettuce, peas and green beans have done well for most people. But when it comes to those guys who need a long warm summer, the reports are not so good. Tomatoes and peppers have been generally disappointing. Most corn didn't live up to the old rule of "knee high by the Fourth of July." Good thing we are the eternal optimists and always say, "Well maybe it will do better next year."

Now for my final "words of wisdom." A wise man once wrote that the best thing you can put in your garden is your shadow. How true.

Elaine Cerny has gardened most of her life, starting in 4-H. Since then, she has always kept a garden of some sort, growing everything from fruits and vegetables to flowers and house plants. She has belonged to garden clubs in three states and is an active member of the River City Gardeners Club in Post Falls.