Monthly To-Do
We've had plenty of rain lately, sometimes too much! But stay vigilant about keeping your plants watered. Don't allow plants to get more than very slightly wilted or you'll stress them and invite pests and disease.
Don't let the August garden get you discouraged. Heat and drought can make a garden look ratty-looking, but even 15 or 20 minutes of weeding, cutting back, deadheading, mulching, and watering can make a huge difference.
Harvest early and often for the most tender, sweetest produce and to keep plants producing well. Click here for great harvest tips!
Great late summer flower garden perk-up tip: Buy a hanging basket of annuals, often deeply discounted this time of year. Dig a hole in a bare or problem spot in a flower bed and plant the flowers directly in the flower bed. The spreading stems hide a lot of sins. You can even plant the pot and all--just be sure to keep it well-watered.
Annual flowers can be the star of the August garden. Keep them well watered, deadheaded, and well fertilized (apply a granular or liquid all-purpose fertilizer according to package directions).
Deadhead flowers on annuals, perennials, and some shrubs. It keeps your garden more attractive and in many cases, it will encourage more flowers. Check out our videos on deadheading different kinds of flowers by clicking here.
Avoid planting, transplanting, or dividing anything other than a tree or shrub right now. It's so hot that smaller plants will struggle. It's best to wait for cooler weather.
Spring-blooming bulbs such as tulips and daffodils will start showing up in stores soon. Ignore those discount, great-priced bulbs you see at the box stores, supermarkets, and elsewhere. They are almost always undersized and won't bloom well, if at all. Instead, bite the bullet and go to a good garden center or order online from a quality bulb retailer. (Again, avoid the cheapies.) With bulbs, you get what you pay for.
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