With the lingering perfect weather this summer, you might want to fertilize annuals one more time. Who knows, we might be in for warm days lasting well into October.

Hopefully, too, the warm days and mild nights will continue long enough to allow many green tomatoes on the vine to ripen. For many, the tomato plants were slow to produce, but are now loaded with still green tomatoes.

Other nightshades are doing well this summer, too. Several varieties of eggplant are showing beautiful, deep green foliage with little insect damage. And the plants are sagging, full of eatable fruit. As was planned, there are five different types of eggplant ready and waiting for the roasting flames.

Delightful also this year are the cucumber vines. They've been very productive, although now winding down. This season the long vines were prodded to wind their way through the tomato support poles. That way, here and there the hanging cucumbers added variety to the tomato and eggplant shapes. The cucumbers have been sweet, juicy and delicious this season.

Of course, don't forget that your perennials might need some fertilizer in the weeks to come.