August Top Tips

August Top Gardening Tips by Frosts resident Garden Expert Maurice Rust

August is no holiday month in the garden, there is still lots to do to keep the garden neat and tidy.
Dead flowers and seed pods in the herbaceous border should be cut off regularly.
This also applies to annuals to prevent seed forming, it will encourage them to go on flowering well in to the autumn.
Regular feeding with a liquid fertilizer will also be beneficial to encourage continuous flowering.
If you are growing dahlias you should continue to disbud and allow only one flower head to form on each stem, this will ensure large flower heads rather than several smaller heads. The plants will require regular tying in of side shoots. Earwigs dine at the 'Ritz' where dahlias are grown, a good old fashioned method of trapping earwigs is a potfull of dry grass (hay) in an upside down 9 cm (3 inches) flower pot on a cane above the dahlia plant you will soon be collecting lots of earwigs in the dry grass each day.
Chryanthemums should also be disbudded unless growing spray varieties. Again generous weekly liquid feeds and plenty of water will help with bud formation. Regular spraying of insecticide and fungicide will prevent the build up of pest and diseases.
Towards the end of the month if you are growing the bedding plant statice and helichrysum for winter decoration, they should be cut now, choose a dry day.Tie in loose bunches and hang upside down from the roof of the garden shed of garage to dry, remember the bunches must have plenty of air circulation or they will go mouldy.
During the summer, suckers will appear on rose bushes, these should be cut off as close to the stock to prevent further growth.
Traditonally during late August is the time when rambler roses should be pruned as they finish flowering. Disentangle the growths and cut to ground level all the growths that have flowered this year. Tie in any new growths to your support wires or trellis as these will be next years flowering wood.

Lawns

It is the same general treatment for this month as in July. If the grass is overgrown on your return from holiday, do not cut at the summer height.
Tip this growth at the first cut, then reduce the height of the cut for the following mowing.
August is the last month of the year for weed killing and for feeding with nitrogen-rich fertilizer.
Once September has arrived then use an 'Autumn weed and feed fertilizer.
Seed sowing can begin in late August providing we do not have a late hot dry spell, if so wait until its a little cooler and the soil is moist.
Depending on weather conditions mowing should take place as required.

Summer Care of House Plants

All house plants will continue to grow during this month, so they should be fed regularly with a liquid feed such as 'Baby Bio or Miracle-Gro'.
Keep them moist at all times, but allow them to dry out a little between watering, keep delicate plants like African Violets and Streptocarpous away from bright sunlight as the leaves will scorch very quickly and the leaves will then be marked.
If any plants need repotting or potting on this can still be done during this month, use a Multi-purpose or Specialist Compost depending on the type of plant.
If you are having a holiday this month some house plants can still be put outside during the time you are away, put them in the shade to acclimatise.
Plants such as Cytisus, Azalea, Ficus, Bonsai, Cymbidium Orchids, Cliva, Plumbago, Bouganvillea, Abutilion and Hibiscus will enjoy a summer holiday in the garden. Just remember to get a friend or neighbour to water them.

Herbaceous Border

Some plants have now finished flowering, dead head them and reduce some growth to tidy up the border.
Remember to leave enough growth to allow them to die down naturally so as the nurishment in the old foliage returns to the crown of the plant.
Some plants like Meconopsis, Lupins, Sweet Peas, Aquilegia can be allowed to seed, when the pods are ripe gather the dry seeds.
You can increase your stock of garden plants. Most of these will germinate more quickly if the seed is sown straight away.
Regular spraying with insecticides and fungicides will still be required to keep pest and disease under control.
If the weather continues to be dry, hoe the border to keep weeds from taking any moisture from your garden plants, loosening the top of the soil will also help keep moisture in the soil.

Fruit Garden

August is the beginning of the fruit harvest, Gooseberries, Black Currants, White Currants, Red Currants, Raspberries. Loganberries and Blackberries will all be ready to harvest from mid-July onwards. 'Enjoy the fruits of your labour'.
Any strawberry runners that you pegged down during July can be cut from the mother plant by mid August, plantin new positions once they are well rooted.
Prune summer fruiting Raspberries once they have finished fruiting, remove to ground level, all of the old canes once they have fruited. Retaining only the strongest of the new canes for next years cropping. If the rows are very thick then thin some of the canes out to incease air circulation.
Blackcurrants should be pruned immediately after fruiting by removing all the old fruiting wood.
Blackcurrants will also benifit from feeding with a nitrogenous fertilizer, such as sulphate of ammonia, to encourage the production of strong young wood for next year.
Summer Fruiting raspberries can be fed in the same way.
Trained fruit trees should have all their new growths tied in regularly. Members of the 'stone family' (Prunus Family) such as plums, cherries should be pruned now during the summer so as the cuts on the branches do not weep.
Summer pruning of apples and pears should be carried out this month, by reducing some of thre tip growth back a little.
Early varieties of apple, pears, plums can be harvested this month.
Cherries too if the 'birds' do not get there before you can pick them.
All spraying of insecticides and fungicides should cease at least three or four weeks be harvesting any fruiting crops.

Vegetable Garden

Both runner beans and celery are crops that need a lot of moisture, and if the weather continues hot and dry they should be watered freely. Both will benifit from feeding during August. During dry spells the flowers of runner beans will often wither without setting. A fine spray of water each day over the whole of the plant will help to encourage a good set.
Spring cabbage can be sown now for harvesting next spring,a late sowing of lettuce now will mature enough for cutting in late autumn.
Onions now reaching maturity should be encouraged to ripen. The tops should be bent over and the bulbs can be partially lifted with a fork to hasten ripening. Feeding of all onion crops should now cease, otherwise ripening will be hindered.
If potato blight is allowed to develop, remember this will attack and spoil outdoor tomatoes as well. Spraying regularly with copper fungicide will help prevent serious damage on both crops. Once the 'potato tops' have gone yellow it is generally a sign that they are ready for lifting.
Marrows should be cut while they are young and before the outer skins harden and sets to get the best flavour.
Brussel sprouts and other winter brassica's will benefit from feeding this month. This will help keep them growing steadily and develop into strong plants.

Bedding Plants

Cuttings taken from Zonal Geraniums, Regal Pelgoniums, Ivy Leaf geraniums and fuchsias now will root very quickly at this time of year.
Cuttings taken now from your favourite plants will build up young healthy plants to over winter for next year.
Choose none flowering plant material if possible, using a sharp knife cuttings should be about 5/6 cm long (two and a half inches long).
Place four to five cuttings round the edge of the pot using multi-purpose cutting compost or a mixture of peat and some sharp sand or vermiculite, cut cleanly just below a leaf joint, remove the lower leaves and dip in hormone rooting powder.
Leave in a sheltered position, shaded from the sun, keep moist and they will root in two to three weeks.
If you grow your own autumn bedding plants sowings of wallflower, winter flowering pansy, mysotis, sweet williams and other biennials should have been completed by now.
If you have any young seedlings they will require a lot of moisture if sown direct into the soil.

The Garden Pond

Keep the pond water well aerated during hot weather by fitting air pumps, extra water pumps or fountains.
Plenty of floating plants on the pond surface will help keep down algae, such plants as 'water lettuce' or 'water hyacinth'.
Dead head all water plants regularly.
To combat 'blanket weed' use 'Goodbye Blanket Weed' a natural product.
Keep feeding fish this month as they will be building up reserves for the coming winter months.
Baby fish will be visible now, catch them and raise then an aquarium or seperate tank as large fish will eat them, untill they are large enough to fend for themselves, remember to use a filter and aerate the water.
Check your fish for any signs of disease as infection can spread quickly during hot weather.

Trees and Shrubs

Early summer flowering shrubs should be pruned as soon as they have finished flowering by removing the growths that have flowered this year.This will encourage new wood to grow to flower on next year.
August is a good month to trim laurel hedges. For this secateurs should be used, not hedge shears which will disfigure the foliage.
Many shrubs will be in full flower this month these include, Buddeja, Calluna (summer flowering heathers), Caryopteris, Campsis, Ceanothus, Ceratostigma willmottianum, Clematis, Erica cinerea, Erica tetralix, Erica vagans, Fuchsia, Hibiscus, Hydrangea, Hypericum, Itea, Lavendula,Lonicera, Myrtus, Olearia, Passiflora, Perovskia, Phygellus, Potentilla, Romneya, Solanums, Yucca, and many more will give lots of glorious summer colourduring August and into September.

The Gardening tip for This Month

Make the most of the long summer evenings in the garden, take time to plan your spring garden for next year.