Good morning. The garden seems to be putting up its last hurrah before another sojourn begins. The dahlias are glorious and fill both the garden and my vases. The milkweed has passed, but as it did, we had our last batch of monarch butterflies hatch.

Hatching day was a day of wonder with my 22-month-old granddaughter, Nola Grace, here for the show. Everything is a wonder to her. She thinks acorns are better than anything and has discovered they fit quite well into those odd things called pockets. (The washing machine, however, is taking a beating. It has been years since I have had to check pockets for little treasures).

We were outside “walkin” as she calls it and ended up sitting on the grass and just watching as perhaps two dozen of the bright orange beauties flapped and dried their wings, and flew in the sunshine all around us. It was magic. After they began to scatter, however, we noticed one sitting on a warm rock near the chives. On closer inspection, it, unfortunately, became obvious that its wings were misshapen and it would never fly away. I simply explained that it was still drying and we went inside for lunch. Two days later, when Nola arrived for the day, she instantly went to the rock. It was still there, still struggling but also still alive. While Nola was busy elsewhere, I gently moved it to another garden.

You see, I couldn’t stand to watch her worry about him for another day, but I also couldn’t end his struggle. It isn’t in me. I have this same problem in the garden. I will hang on to a plant, no matter how pitiful, because it is trying. Some gardeners would say this is a bad attitude if you want beautiful gardens. I tend to see it as a hopeful attitude and not every plant in a garden has to be perfect to have beautiful gardens.

I guess the lesson with the butterfly, acorns and not-so-perfect plants is this: beauty and wonder are in the eye of the beholder. Since you plant and weed and do the work, you can have your garden anyway you like, and you can also take the joy into your heart when that spindly plant sometimes becomes a beauty or when that acorn grows into a mighty oak.

Here are a few of the chores you might do soon and a fun way to extend gardening for a bit.

*Now is the time to divide or plant new peonies. They do best if moved in fall. The only warning here is to make sure they are planted at the exact depth at which they were previously growing. Planting a peony too deep will preclude it from blooming in the future. If you are dividing and the bush was growing and blooming well, put it back to the exact same depth. New peonies should be planted to the same level they are at in the the pot. Do not mulch peonies. They don’t like it. Make sure that all branches have been cut back to about 1 inch and clean up all debris around your peonies. Leaving that inch showing will be a reminder in the spring of where they are so you don’t walk on them, etc.

*Fall is also a good time to divide daylilies or to plant new ones. They are a very strong plant and survive quite nicely. Try to divide so there are at least two fans for each planting. You can mulch these for their first winter, after the ground freezes.

*Now is also the time to spread those brown-eyed Susan seeds if you haven’t cut back the spent blooms. The seeds have had time to dry in the pods and will quickly fill in bare spots or troublesome spots with color. When I pull out annuals such as snapdragons, portulacas and stocks, I always shake the plants. Seeds from these annuals will winter and pop up in the spring. Even if they “pop” up in the wrong place, you can dig them up and put them where you want prefer.

*Grab a couple of bottles of Wilt Pruf for your rhododendrons. I spray this on sometime after Halloween (on a warm day; read the directions for temperature requirements) and it helps your rhodies make it through the winter, especially those that are more ice than snow, have extended periods of warmth or bring lots of icy wind. Most people lose rhodies in early spring because the plants simply did not have enough moisture to make it through. Every time the weather warms, rhodies put up their leaves and lose moisture. Wilt Pruf helps prevent that.

*Make sure from now until heavy freeze that shrubs and gardens are well watered. Don’t count on Mother Nature providing what is needed. Plants that go into winter with plenty of moisture have a much better chance of coming out alive in the spring. Water in the morning.

*If you have evergreen shrubs or small trees that you treasure and that will be attractive to deer this winter, get some fruit tree netting and cover them. You can do this around Thanksgiving when you know all growth has stopped (get the net now). When the deer come to munch, their noses hit the netting and it frightens them off. Just remember, get those nets off before growth starts, or it will be a BIG chore because the new growth will go through the holes in the net.

*Don’t forget the super phosphate for your rose bushes. They usually carry it at nurseries and at Paris Farmer’s Union stores. Put this around the rose bushes before you mulch them. In the spring when the ground thaws, it will give the bushes a jump-start.

*Find a plastic pot, 6 inches is good, and put in things like kale, small asters, small mums and late grasses. Get a pumpkin that is taller than the pot and wide enough so that when you cut the top off, it will accommodate the pot. Clean out the pumpkin, cut a hole in the bottom and spray the inside with some Wilt Pruf. Let it dry in the sun and put in the pot. It makes a perfect decoration for the front door or the front walk. Add a few gourds and squash and, poof, you have a lovely fall display. Make sure to remove the pot to water and let it drain before replacing it in the pumpkin.

I won’t have to shop for squash for my display this year. I have a compost pile over a cliff at my house and that is where those gourds, pumpkins and squash get thrown when their time is done. Well, one from last fall took root and grew this year and I have a very large roaming plant that has grown back up to the top of the cliff. We hadn’t even noticed it until about three weeks ago. It has some fairly good sized “somethings” growing on it (remember, I don’t DO vegetables). Anyway, Nola Grace is taking great delight in checking it each day. She is big into picking things, even green things. So very soon we will climb down that cliff and gather the harvest of “somethings” because my husband Ike says there are some much bigger ones down below. Check out the picture and let me know what you think, vegetable gardeners

Until next time, enjoy the last of the flowers, watch for the beautiful surprises that Mother Nature provides and if you get the chance, just go “walkin” with a little one and listen and truly appreciate the sense of wonder they can give back to you.

Happy gardening.

Jody Goodwin has been gardening for more than 20 years. She lives in Turner with her husband, Ike, her two dogs and two cats. She can be reached by writing to her in care of the Sun Journal, 104 Park St., Lewiston, Maine, 04243-4400 or by e-mail at [email protected]