KEEP EYE ON VEGGIES IN SUMMER.

Byline: JANE GATES Gardening

SANTA CLARITA - With all this heat, it looks like it's payback time for the long cool winter.

Make sure you get out early to do your gardening chores, or try the early evening when the temperatures start to cool. The air quality is slightly better early and late, too. And don't forget the sun block and a hat, even if you aren't out in the hottest time of the day.

Check the vegetable patch daily, especially if you are growing summer squashes. These vegetables grow so swiftly, the dinner-size squash you miss can become a baseball bat in no time, draining the plant of all its energy.

Beans tend to suffer a bit with all this heat. Keep an eye open for spider mite pests as well. They especially like tomatoes, eggplant and bean leaves in hot dry weather. You will notice a whitish hue to the leaves. Close inspection will show a white stippling on the top of leaves and almost microscopic spiders with their webs on the underside of the leaves.

Hose the back of leaves often to dislodge the pests and add the humidity they don't like so the new foliage will grow out green and unaffected.

Pick radishes often, before they grow tough. Keep an eye out for the destructive hornworm on tomatoes and pick them off by hand. Keep dead leaves removed to lessen hiding spaces for earwigs, snails and pill bugs. And feed often and lightly with your preferred vegetable food.

Should you decide to plant new flowers, shrubs or trees, make sure you water the hole first and let the water sink into the ground before planting.

Keep new arrivals well-watered. A little shading for the first day or two would be appreciated for plants going into the full sun. Another way to condition new plants to this burning sun is to set the potted plant in its final location for a few days before it goes into the ground. This way it can acclimate itself to the new surroundings before it goes through the stress of root disturbance. Just don't forget to water at least daily because pots dry out quickly.

The hillsides are drying out, so wildlife is starting to encroach on our green lawns and gardens to supplement their now-dwindling resources. Rabbits tend to nibble at the tops of grass so they usually don't do too much damage to lawns. They can, however, decimate favorite bushes and perennials as well as edible crops you intend for your own table. Some folks have luck with predator scents or water-squirting motion detectors.

I've simply stuck to the old-fashioned rabbit wire and chicken wire to protect special plants or areas. Netting on fruit trees is often the only way to save at least some of the crop from birds and raccoons. Plan to share some, but if you don't make provisions for protection, be warned the wildlife will not think twice about consuming it all. And they will not even leave you a thank-you note.