Here we go again with a brand new month. Too bad it's October instead of July. Guess we'll just have to hope for a long Indian Summer with no freezing temperatures for many weeks. The autumnal equinox, aka the first day of fall, was on Sept. 23. It sneaked up when no one was looking.

Be sure to keep those hummingbird feeders filled up. Even though the birds you fed all summer seem to have disappeared, there will be hummers coming through here from farther north. These will appreciate a rest stop. One serving free drinks.

Speaking of critters, have you seen any wooly bear caterpillars in your yard this summer? I found two in the past couple of weeks. These are very easy to identify as they are large, black and very fuzzy with a few long white spikes that are also soft to the touch. Wooly bears can supposedly foretell the severity of the coming winter by counting the number of segments in the orange band around their middles. Several cities back east have Wooly Bear festivals each year. Their hope is to eventually replace Punxsutawney Phil, the famous groundhog.

A lot of us save seeds from year to year. This works fine as long as they are not from a hybrid variety as these will not come true when planted. There are still plenty of plants that will look the same year after year. Some easy ones to save are those from annual poppies, larkspurs and cosmos. Now is a good time to start collecting them.

Some of the old-fashioned flowering plants have the greatest names. These include Kiss Me Over the Garden Gate, Love Lies Bleeding and Love in a Mist. One of the easiest plants to grow has the nickname of Poor Man's Orchid. It gets very tall and blooms all summer. Trouble is, there is one huge drawback. This plant can produce untold seeds and needs to be deadheaded about once a week. If not, you will have a LOT of baby plants next spring. It lives up to its nickname which is Touch Me Not, as a ripe seedpod will literally explode when touched, sending seeds flying.

Now that the vegetable gardens have produced their bounty, we need to remember which ones do not go into the refrigerator. These include tomatoes, potatoes and cucumbers. Hopefully you got a bumper crop of each.

Many of us have been busy dividing and moving perennials. Remember to give them room to grow. The old axiom is true. The first year they sleep, the second year they creep and the third year, they leap!

I received a hardy hibiscus plant for my June birthday. It has been producing some huge blossoms lately. These can reach up to a foot across, although mine haven't quite hit that size yet. Maybe once the plant becomes established. Next year?

• Catch Phyllis Stephens on KXLY 920: A lot of us were not happy when our local radio station, KVNI, switched its format to all sports, all the time. If you've been missing the Lawn and Garden show with Phyllis Stephens, I have good news. Her show is still being broadcast from KXLY AM 920 in Spokane at the same 8-11 a.m. time slot on Saturday mornings.

Have you ever watched a bee or wasp on a blossom and wondered which it is? If it folds its wings back, it is a bee. If the wings stay spread out, it's a type of wasp. So, does that answer the famous question, "to bee or not to bee?"

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.