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Gardening Tips for August 2006
by Thea Fiskin, UC Master Gardener

The hot lazy days of August make it difficult to work in the garden, so don't! Instead spend time having barbecues, family reunions, and picnics in the shade. The only real garden chore is watering and that you cannot ignore. For the avid gardener be sure to do any garden tasks in the early morning or early evening and dress coolly, drink plenty of water and take breaks.

PLANT: Believe it or not August is the time to start planting that winter veggie garden. You can plant beets, bok choi, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, cilantro, garlic, lettuce, peas, radishes and spinach. Root crops should not be transplanted, so be sure to direct seed beets, carrots and radishes. Sow seeds of annual flowers (calendulas, Iceland poppies, pansies, snapdragons, stock) and biennials (clary sage, hollyhocks, rose campion) in flats or pots for transplanting later in the fall. Biennial seeds planted now will usually bloom next spring, whereas in colder climates they don't bloom until their second year.

WATERING: Holding the hose and watering is relaxing for the gardener but usually isn't giving enough water to our trees, they need deep watering. Deep water all fruit trees (deep means down to three feet). Since the majority of roots that take water up the tree extend beyond the drip line of the tree canopy, don't water next to the trunk. You can prevent fruit split on citrus, pomegranates and tomatoes by sticking to a regular irrigation schedule. Give container plants some extra water as they can dry out quickly.

GARDEN CHORES:

Encourage new blooms on your summer annuals and perennials by removing the wilting flowers, before seed heads form.

Harvest fruits and vegetables regularly. Pick up any fallen or decaying fruit. Throw away diseased or insect infested fruits.

Give support to fruit tree branches to prevent them from breaking.

Divide amaryllis, bearded iris and oriental poppies.

Check catalogs or online for unusual bulb varieties to plant, look for cyclamen, watsonia and lycoris.

Prune apricots and olives now rather than in winter to prevent susceptibility to disease in winter months.

Snip off rosehips, spent flowers and fertilize roses. Doing this now will give you beautiful roses in October.

Give azaleas, camellias, citrus and rhododendrons a final fertilizing for the year.

Feed chrysanthemums until buds begin to open.

Harvest herbs in the morning. If you don't use them right away, then dry the cut herbs on a screen in the shade or make an herb "bouquet" for your home.

Fertilize bermuda, St. Augustine, and zoysia lawns. Don't fertilize fescue and other cool season lawns until the weather cools off in another month.

Avoid "Lawnmower blight" don't damage tree trunks as you mow around them.

WEED CONTROL: Did you have annual bluegrass in your flowerbeds and lawns areas last winter? To prevent all that winter weeding, apply a preemergent herbicide toward the end of August; believe me, it really works.

CRITTER CONTROL: The struggle between the gardener and garden pests is ongoing, so keep a lookout for them.

When trying to get rid of unwanted pests, choose the method with the least toxicity to people and pets. Sometimes an insect needs no pesticide spray because beneficial insects are ready to take them out, if given a chance. Handpicking worms and blasting foliage with sharp sprays of water helps dislodge unwanted insects. When using any pesticide please follow label instructions exactly and never use more than is recommended. We can all do our share to help the environment. Store chemicals in their original containers, in a cool, dry area where children and pets can't reach. Don't spray pesticides when temperatures are over eighty degrees which means if you must spray it is probably best to spray in the early morning.

Help prevent West Nile Virus by controlling mosquitoes. Keep water from standing in bird baths, potted plants and even pet bowls, change them frequently, at least twice a week. Never leave water standing in sprinkling cans or buckets. Prevent mosquitoes in your water garden, add fish, add a fountain or water fall or use BT (Bacillus thuringiensis) donuts control larvae. Remember mosquitoes bite, suck blood, and spread disease.