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What to do in your garden in August

Planting

Late-summer to fall color - Choice perennials for late-season color include coreopsis, daylily, gaura, lavatera, nemesia, rudbeckia, salvias, and verbena for sun. In the shade, plant Japanese anemone.

Late tomato crop - If you want to try for fall or winter tomatoes, look for ‘Early Girl’ seedlings.

Maintenance

Dethatch warm-season grasses - Late summer is the ideal time to dethatch Bermuda and St. Augustine grasses because they grow back quickly. If thatch is heavy, don’t get rid of it all at once: Dethatch lightly and repeat in a month. Unless you have a very small lawn, rent a dethatching machine.

Irrigate trees and shrubs - Give these plants a deep soaking, even if they’re regularly watered by a sprinkler system. Set a hose to deliver water slowly into a basin around the plant, or lay a soaker hose around the plant along its dripline. Run the water until the soil is soaked to a depth of 12 inches for shrubs or up to 24 inches for trees. Check moisture penetration by digging down with a trowel.

Mist plants occasionally - Misting plants with a hose on hot days gives them a lift, keeps foliage clean, and chases away pests like spider mites. However, do not spray foliage of roses in late afternoon, as this may encourage fungal diseases.

Protect against brushfires - If you live in a fire-prone area and haven’t done so already, remove all dead limbs and leaves from trees and shrubs, particularly those that grow near your house. Keep tall grasses and weeds cut down to stubble; remove any woody vegetation growing next to structures. Create an evacuation plan. Visit www.sunset.com/fire for more tips.

Water some plants frequently - Container plants and hanging baskets dry out rapidly in late summer, so daily soakings may be necessary. Water annuals and vegetables often as well. This time of year, shallow-rooted trees like avocado and citrus need irrigation at least once a week.

Tips for all seasons:

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Annuals and Perennials

The general category of perennials encompasses plants with widely varying habits of growth, but all have at least one thing in common: they live for more than two years, in contrast to annuals, which complete their life cycle within one year. Some perennials die down to the ground at the end of each growing season, then reappear at the start of the next.

Before setting out annuals or perennials, you will want to prepare a planting bed. Good soil preparation is essential.

Begin by eliminating weeds. Then loosen the soil with a shovel; it should be slightly damp when you work it, not wet or bone-dry. Dig down 12 inches if you can, breaking up clods, and removing stones as you go.

Spread a 3 to 4 inch layer of organic matter over the area (our LGM Planting Mix/Mulch is excellent) Also add a balanced fertilizer at this time. Osmocote slow release or Marathon 15-15-15 (see our SPECIALS Page for a great deal) is best. Follow directions on the label. Incorporate all amendments evenly into the soil and then level bed with a rake.

Cool Season - Plant cool season annuals in the Fall and through the Winter. Pansy, Primrose, Calendula, CA Poppy, Sweet pea, Snapdragon.

Warm Season - Plant warm season annuals starting in May. Marigold, Zinnia, Petunia, Cosmos, Salvia, Impatiens