From the Editor's Desk: Summertime is a garden of activity in Kane County

It’s not quite summer yet, but all the earmarks of the season are fast approaching.

For one, I’ve already started to neglect the flowers in front of my home and the herbs in my garden. Which at my house is always a sure sign that the splendor of spring is fading into heated summer doldrums. As someone who reads all the Learning to Grow columns, you would think I’d be able to keep some plants alive. I guess there is an art to garden management that I just can’t quite grasp.

Unlike the dismal scene in my two raised garden beds, more positive signs of summer life are sprouting up, including pool openings, summer programs, Cougars games and outdoor concerts.

If you want to keep up on the quintessential things to do this summer, I’d suggest signing up for the Kane County Events newsletter, which sends 10 hand-picked happenings straight to your email inbox every Friday morning to help prepare you for all the great activities available in Kane County.

Another resource that I find myself checking to stay up to date is planitkane.com, which lays out many of the need-to-know entertainment events going on in your area. And I do say your area, because there is a handy feature on the site that lets users search for events by the nearest city or village. Whether it is St. Charles or Sugar Grove, the expansive calendar can help you find something targeted to your taste to do this weekend and beyond, whether it is a concert at the Arcada or Pheasant Run, an event at the Kane County Fairgrounds or maybe a nature program from the Kane County Forest Preserve District.

You can even add your own events to planitkane.com, and the process is pretty simple. After visiting planitkane.com, you click the “+ Add Event” button and then simply follow the prompts. The more information you put into your submissions, the more information potential attendees will have to decide whether they want to go to your event. This is a situation where you should always provide more details, not fewer.

Well, I hope I’ve helped at least a few of you figure out your weekend plans. Me, I’ll be mourning the loss of the beautiful flowers outside my house. This time they lasted almost two weeks.

Zachary Van Vuren is weeklies editor for the Kane County Chronicle, Elburn Herald, Sugar Grove Herald, Kendall County Record and Suburban Life Media. Contact him at zvanvuren@shawmedia.com or 630-845-5368.