Gardening Jobs for August

With autumn approaching, your gardening jobs for August will focus on harvesting and preparing for the colder months ahead. Make sure to make the most of your garden while the sunshine lasts, and don’t forget to get help watering if you’re planning a summer holiday!

Tips for August Gardening

1. Water deeply but start to water less frequently. As the weather turns and crops like tomatoes, runner beans and courgettes come to harvest, less water is needed.
2. Continue feeding flowering plants and vegetables with a fertiliser to boost growth and provide nutrients.
3. Deadhead perennials regularly to keep plants blooming into autumn.
4. Plan and prepare for autumn planting such as your spring bulbs (but don’t forget autumn bulbs either!)

Garden Maintenance

1. Continue to mow lawns regularly, raising blades as the grass is stressed from the heat.
2. Keep your garden tools clean to prevent spread of disease and store away any that are not in use.
3. Brush out any ant nests before mowing to tackle ant infestations.
4. Clean your compost bins, turn the compost and check moisture levels to boost decomposition.
5. Make sure to remove weeds like dandelions before they seed and spread about your lawn.

Garden Beds

1. Keep watering and deadheading bedding plants like petunias and geraniums.
2. Continue mulching to conserve moisture and suppress weeds.
3. Start clearing fading annuals and prepare space for autumn pansies and wallflowers.
4. Continue to hoe the garden beds to help tackle weeds and prevent them from taking root.

Vegetables

1. Sow your final crops of lettuce, radish, pak choi, spinach and spring onions.
2. Start planting spring cabbages for overwintering
3. Regularly harvest produce from your runner beans, courgettes, tomatoes, sweetcorn, beetroot and carrots.
4. Keep watching for blight on potatoes and tomatoes. If spotted, remove affected leaves immediately.
5. Dry off and lift onions and garlic once foliage yellows.
6. Earth up and support brassicas like sprouts and kale.

Fruits

1. Harvest ripe apples, pears, plums, raspberries and blackberries.
2. Prune summer-fruiting raspberries and cut down your fruited canes.
3. Feed fruit trees with a balanced fertiliser to continue to provide rich nutrients.
4. Thoroughly water your container fruits like figs, blueberries and lemons.
5. Prop up heavy-laden plum and apple branches to prevent snapping.

Flowers

1. Prune delphiniums, lupins, and lady’s mantle after flowering to encourage a second flush.
2. Deadhead roses, cosmos, dahlias, zinnias and marigolds regularly.
3. Cut back faded perennials like coreopsis, echinacea, and shasta daisies.
4. Sow hardy annuals for next year such as calendula, cornflowers and poppies.
5. Take cuttings from fuchsias, penstemons, salvias and lavender.
6. Lift and store bulbs of gladioli and lilies if foliage is yellowing.

Trees & Shrubs

1. Prune wisteria by cutting back long whippy growths to about 5-6 leaves.
2. Lightly shape evergreen shrubs like camellia and viburnum tinus.
3. Water newly planted trees during periods of hot and dry weather.
4. Check tree ties and adjust for growth (make sure they aren’t too loose either!)

Herbs

1. Sow coriander, parsley, and chervil for autumn use.
2. Harvest and dry thyme, rosemary and sage.
3. Remove flowers from basil to keep it leafy and conserve energy.

Greenhouse

1. Ventilate well to avoid overheating and use shading as needed to protect plants from burning.
2. Water daily in hot weather to keep plants hydrated.
3. Remove yellowing leaves and spent flowers to conserve energy towards productive growth.
4. Sow winter lettuce, mizuna and mustard greens for autumn harvests.
5. Clean glass to maximise light as days begin to shorten.

Wildlife & Birds

1. Keep bird baths clean and topped up with fresh water daily.
2. Make sure bird feeders and food sources for other animals like hedgehogs are stocked as natural food starts to dwindle.
3. Leave seed heads on sunflowers, teasels and echinacea for birds.
4. Avoid cutting back hedges drastically to preserve late nests and berries.
5. Create shelter with log piles, bug hotels or preserve an area of long grass for wildlife.

Ponds

1. Top up water levels with rainwater to compensate for evaporation. You can set up a bucket or water drum in your garden to collect rainwater.
2. Remove blanket weed and duckweed regularly using a net or stick. Make sure to place any weeds beside the pond to allow any wildlife caught to go back into the pond.
3. Clean pond pumps and filters.