Gardening – August 24

Tom Strowlger

@garden_with_tom

August, the last month of meteorological summer is upon us so we must enjoy some restful downtime, with the summer holidays in full swing our gardens will have a busy month. We can spend time with our friends and family, sitting back in our garden chairs surrounded by the bright floral colour. We must cherish the month of August as early Autumn is just around the corner and colours will change as the days slowly become cooler and shorter.

August can be a hot month so our plants will need to be watered frequently to ensure they thrive into early Autumn. It would be very nice to have as much floral colour for as long as possible. To be sure that plants get moisture into the roots we should water directly into the base of the plants and ideally in the evening when the risk of evaporation is reduced and they can sit in the moisture overnight. If you go on holiday it is very important that someone waters your garden whilst you are away, otherwise you may return to sad plants.

The late summer days can still bring the occasional blustery and strong winds; this is refreshing for us but can be destructive to our delicate summer flowers. We need to ensure our taller plants and flowers are protected from wind damage by using plant supports. The ideal plant support will give support for the tallest of flower stems. Dahlia will certainly need support to keep their top heavy flowers up straight, we don’t want any of our tall flowering plants to be knocked over and damaged as that will bring our floral colour to an early end.

The lawn grass can start to turn brown in hot and dry weather, this isn’t something to worry about as the grass will go dormant until the rains returns. However, if we want to keep the lawn healthy, green and lush then watering it a couple of evenings per week will help it maintain a healthier look and feel. The growth of grass slows in late summer so use a high cut setting on your lawnmower to encourage healthy grass.

The warm days will make it easier for weeds, pests and diseases to thrive. We should still be looking out for Aphids, Lily Beetles, Vine Weevils and Slugs amongst our leaves and flowers.

In the first instance gently remove the pest by hand and then use as organic treatment to reduce the risk of them damaging plants further. We should try and keep our plants as healthy as possible as it will help them to flourish into early Autumn.

We must get outside as much as possible, to enjoy the garden much more than when we are distracted by the routine of life. We should take a moment to reflect on the summer gardening season and think about what we want to see in our gardens this time next year, a few quick photos of the garden can be a great help when planning for summer 2024.

Lastly, congratulations fellow gardeners, you can now fully enjoy the floral fruits of your labour.