The temperatures are in the mid-90s. The humidity is so high that my daughter walks outside and claims it’s misting, even though there’s not a cloud in the sky. Something has completely destroyed my little patch of beans, and grass has quickly taken over the watermelons and cantaloupes. I stand at my garden, sweating just picking the cherry tomatoes, and don’t even feel like tackling the grass.

Why am I so complainy? In the big scheme of things, I should be very proud of my vegetable garden. This spring when I planted the little seedlings and seeds, I worried every night that it would be completely destroyed by deer, or that it wouldn’t grow at all for some reason. But it did grow! We’ve eaten lots of fresh vegetables. And I’m still harvesting tomatoes and cucumbers every day, a squash once in a while, and am looking forward to quite a few bell peppers that are thumb-size right now.

The thing is, it doesn’t look pretty anymore. The best looking part of my garden is the border of marigolds I planted to keep out bugs. And even with that bright part, the sad-looking skeletons of bean plants, drooping tomato stems and yellowing squash leaves, combined with the almost unbearable weather, don’t do much for motivating me to keep these summer vegetables going. 

I’ve found myself already dreaming of the cooler temperatures of fall, and planning my strategy of cleaning out these plants and replacing them with lots of lettuce, spinach and maybe even a few collards. Then I feel guilty, like I’m betraying my strong little squash and cucumber plants that have worked so hard all summer. 

So I have a plan to beat these summer doldrums, and it’s not going to be just bide my time until fall. Once this heat wave breaks and the temperatures go back into the 80s, I’ll pull out those beans, hoe the grass out of the watermelons and stake up the pepper plants to help them out some. 

Just because things aren’t pretty and new-looking anymore doesn’t mean they’re not working hard. With a little love and care, our summer gardens, decade-old lawnmowers, favorite penny loafers and well-worn garden bench can be just as good as new. It’s a good lesson for this time of summer, and this economy, when we’re all trying to pinch a few pennies here and there.