I've been hearing late summer garden grinching lately -- "It's over, I'm done with it," and "It's too late now."

Not so.

My own front porch containers had the blahs, so I pulled out the straggly, half-dead fillers and plunked in some fresh garden mums that are everywhere and very inexpensive.

Mums may be the easiest fall refresher ever. I am planning on plopping a bushel basket full of them in the middle of my perennials. If you want it to look "planted," put them directly into the ground.

Another quick fix for cooler weather can be found in cabbage or kale. These leafy vegetables have stunning purple and greenish foliage that can replace spent annuals. They will look fresh well into frosty months.

So will pansies. They are cool-weather friendly and although they wilt in the heat, can make it past Halloween. Try the orange and blackish ones for fall color.

By the time those flowers are gone, it will be time for evergreens -- the kind with twinkle lights.

I takes more to be a purple ribbon tomato at the Nebraska State Fair than just being orangey red, plump and full of personality.

Last Friday I watched the judges discern between the romas and the garden tomatoes. The yellow pear-shaped tomatoes and the very small patio varieties.

A bit of sunburn damage can make a difference. Bug damage or the hint of disease isn't good either.

The fruits need to be the same size, the same quality and the same kind.

But what about the taste? True tomato lovers would say it's the taste that tells the tale.

Not at this contest. Here it's about the outside, not the inside.

And that goes for other vegetables as well. Onions, garlic, squash, and even zucchini were under the microscope.

And there was no ribbon for Miss Congeniality.

I would like to run speaker wire from my stereo tuner, through the crawlspace and to speakers in another room — maybe later to the patio. Are there any building codes that would prevent this?

You can ask your local building inspector to be sure, but I doubt there will be any codes at all that prevent you from drilling holes or running speaker wire anywhere you want. The low voltage in speaker wire makes it safe enough to run anywhere and pretty much do anything with.

Handily, Steve

If you are headed to Oregon next month, consider a stop at the Great Northwest Tomato Taste-Off. It's one of the highlights of the Sept. 20 Gathering of the Gardeners Festival in Cottage Grove, Oregon.

Apparently, tomato growers compete for cash prizes, but also the title of "Tastiest Tomato Grower."

Sponsored by Territorial Seed Company, they also unveil new varieties from their summer trials.

Granted, the climate is a little different there, than here, but a consistant winner is the heirloom tomato, Brandywine.

Tomato growers here swear by Celebrity and a close second is Better Girl.

That said, my tomato harvest has been a bit sparse -- not enough heat and too much rain, I'm guessing.

I'm hoping for a late summer surge.

Yesterday, Lincoln's renovated rose garden at Antelope Park was officially unveiled.

There is a sixty-year history of the scented beauties showing their stuff at that location, but the latest version tops them all.

There are two distinct elements, a strolling garden, with a more contemporary feeling and a formal garden with Floribundas, minis and Hybrid Teas.

Here are a few of my favorite things from the gardens:

* Pairings of perennials in the strolling garden with hardy roses gives homeowners some great ideas about mixing and matching colors, textures and roses.

* Loved the rose-themed ceramic tiles, designed by Lincoln Park and Rec garden designer Mark Canney and made by local tile artist, Su Harvey.

* The formal rose gardens have end caps of succulents, featuring the rosettes of hens and chicks.

* You don't have to know roses to appreciate what's what. There are lots of labels to help you.

Get over there and take some time so smell the roses.