If we are hot, so are our plants. That is especially true for plants you grow in containers.

Here are some thoughts and ideas about keeping cool.

Herbs derive their flavor from essential oils. I know I have told you and you have also probably heard it other places that the best time to pick herbs is after the dew has dried in the early morning. That is when the essential oils are the strongest.

During the heat of the day and in the sun, the essential oils sneak down into the roots of the plant. Now here we are faced with these really hot days. Move your containers into some shade for the duration of the hot spell or during the day.

Another option is to purchase some shade cloth. I use huge shade cloths to cover greenhouses for the summer. The really neat thing about shade cloth is that it comes in different percentages of sunblock.

I use a 60 percent for my the greenhouses,but there are lots of percentages available. For this type of weather you could probably group your containers together and put some sort of rod or pole in the outer part of the containers and just drape it over the top and secure with a couple of rocks or actually lift the container and set the pot on top of the shade cloth to prevent it from blowing away.

If you like to grow lettuces, greens and salad herbs, using shade cloth is also a great way to extend and keep your harvest going right through the heat and sun. I like putting these on the north side of my pea fence as the peas tend to shade them as well. Later on I put vining crops on the other side of the fence, which helps shade later on. However, with this heat we have, shade cloth is easy to drape from the fence to the wood at the edge of the raised bed.

Shade cloth is open and airy so you don’t have to worry about your plants being suffocated and you can water through it or rain will also be able to penetrate.

Just as we need more water in the heat, so do the plants..

Hope you and your plants find some relief from the heat.

Mixed Greens

with Grapes and Walnuts

Salad:

A bowlful of mixed greens – use

different colors, textures and tastes

1 cup of seedless grapes, green or red

1/2 cup walnuts or nut of choice

Dressing:

4 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 teaspoons grated orange zest

3 tablespoons orange juice

1 teaspoon chopped fresh French

tarragon

6 tablespoons olive oil or oil of choice

A pinch of sugar

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

For salad: Wash the salad greens and spin dry. Put in a large salad bowl so you can freely mix.

Add the washed grapes. Roast the nuts for a few minutes in the oven at 350 degrees F. or in a pan on the stove. Be very careful not to burn. Set the nuts aside.

For dressing: Mix ingredients and whisk until frothy. Pour over salad greens and toss thoroughly. Just before serving, toss the walnuts in.

* Send your questions about gardening to master gardener Collene, c/o the Features Department, Northwest Herald, P.O. Box 250, Crystal Lake, IL 60039-0250. She is the owner of Season’s Greenery in McHenry.