Five Things to Keep You Busy in the August Garden

August is the perfect time to evaluate the garden as everything is at or close to its peak. It is easy to assess which plants did well and where. If there are any gaps or areas that need color, make notes in a garden journal. Walk around your yard and decide if you like the overall design.  Pay close attention to trees and shrubs that might be overgrown and need trimming, or to perennials that are leggy or overcrowded, waiting until fall to trim or divide. Take photographs now or make simple sketches with color notes regarding the addition of future plants or shrubs. Nurseries often have end of season sales and a coveted ‘PG Hydrangea’ for example may be obtained at a significant discount.

Keep up with weeding and watering. You are on the home stretch as most weeds are also peaking in productivity. Make sure to dig weeds up carefully, bagging any flowers or seed heads. Do not put these in the compost or use a composting lawnmower on weeds such as dandelions as they will return in the spring in multitudes. Keep pinching back spent blooms to increase productivity, especially in Carefree or Everlasting Roses.

Evaluate your overall garden design. Rethink high maintenance floral borders and perhaps plan to substitute with hardy Hostas or low-growing shrubs. Keep balance and scale in mind when redesigning garden beds-perennials need regular dividing and pruning or they become leggy, wayward or non-productive.  Larger shrubs provide a solid backdrop for flowers or serve to make the separation between garden and lawn tidier. Roses, vibernums, and potentillas make colorful borders in sunny spots while rhododendrons, azaeleas, summersweet (Clethra alnifolia), mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) and oak leaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) are perfect for shade. Order garlic, bulbs and corms from catalogues for fall planting.

Plant Fall-blooming perennials after mid-month. Garden mums or Chrysanthemums planted in late summer will have enough time to establish roots before the cold weather comes and will behave as any other perennial in the garden, coming back each year in festive fall colors. Purchase plants at a reputable nursery, making sure to look underneath the leaves for snapped branches or signs of disease. Purple or magenta asters, sedums including ‘Autumn Joy’ and S. spectable ‘Brilliant’ are some of the choices for reliable annual blooms.

Train Wayward Vines. Some vines are well-behaved and stick closely to their trellises while others need consistent convincing. Honeysuckles (Lonicera spp.) and Japanese Wisteria (Wisteria floribunda) grow clockwise whereas Chinese Wisteria (W. sinesis), bittersweet (Celastrus spp.) and five leaf akebia (Akebia quinata) grow counterclockwise. Make sure to re-direct vines in accordance to growing habits, securing stems and branches carefully to the support. Some clematis also need constant training-be sure not to snap brittle branches from which new growth will appear.

Sow spinach, radishes, endive, lettuces, arugula and escarole for fall crops. It is not too late to direct-seed turnips for fall harvesting as well. Harvest eggplants, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers as soon as they are ready so that newer fruits have a chance to develop and ripen. Prune berry canes that have finished fruiting.

(Remember: Do not fertilize plants, trees and shrubs. Late-season pruning or fertilizing stimulates new shoots and tender growth that will not have time to adapt before cold weather comes. Plants need to be ready for dormancy.)