As we reach the heart of summer and step into the month of August, our gardens are in full swing! In all zones we are experiencing heat and harvests. But for some of us this can mean an overwhelming amount of tasks to complete!
You may also be noticing a shift in production due to the extreme temperatures and shear amount of things happening in the garden! Not to fret though, this is the perfect time for your garden to thrive and produce an abundance of fruits, vegetables, and flowers with the proper assistance.
To ensure that you enjoy a bountiful harvest this year, we bring you eight essential gardening tips for August that will help you succeed.
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Essential gardening tips for August
Before we delve into our gardening tips, keep in mind that every garden is unique, and what works for one may not work for another. These tips are designed to be adaptable to a variety of gardens and gardener skill levels.
We’ve compiled these vegetable garden tasks with the aim of helping you navigate this busy month with ease and enjoyment. Whether you’re a novice gardener or a seasoned pro, we believe you’ll find something useful in these essential tips to keep your August garden thriving.
Now, let’s get started with the first of our eight key tasks for this bountiful month.
1. Assess Your Garden’s Mid-Summer Health
Pests, heat and lack of consistent irrigation can take a toll on your garden’s production! To mitigate this, take time to survey your garden’s overall health and performance. Examine your plants for any signs of diseases, pests, and nutritional deficiencies. Timely identification and action are crucial in minimizing the impact of any problems on your garden’s growth and productivity.
Heat pressure august vegetable garden tips
Each year feels hotter than the next and while there are many plants that absolutely thrive in the heat, many of our favorite summer vegetables like tomatoes and beans can suffer and slow production in the extreme heat.
Simple fixes like adding shade clothes or umbrellas to cover your crops in the heat of the afternoon can significantly reduce the heat damage that plants deal with. And as we will see later in this post, making some simple shifts to your watering process can make the difference in the end of the season or having bumper crops and more to harvest!
Pest pressure tips
Additionally, many of us growing our own food do have a desire to minimize their use of pesticides because of the harm that they can do to your beneficial insects. But, the heat of summer can increase pest pressure, and with many of your crops coming to harvest, you may want to be more aggressive in your efforts against spider mites, squash bugs, etc.
If you do want to consider more aggressive methods of pest control, you may look into some of the organic methods of control such as beneficial nematodes, and pesticides such as the following:
- Neem oil
- Insecticidal soap
- Spinosad
- BT
- Diatomaceous earth
A word of caution if you are concerned about the beneficial insect populations: use these with caution and lean towards use in the late evening when pollinators and beneficial insects are less active.
2. Continue Planting For Late Summer Harvest
The heat of summer makes early August a great time to plant seeds for crops that you may have lost to pest, heat, or disease earlier in the season so that you can get harvests of summer crops through your first frost date.
Here in zone 7b we have a first frost date after the beginning of November, so having about 100 days to our first frost means we can plant summer seeds that have a short days to maturity and use the increased sunlight and heat to quickly germinate and mature these plants.
This is going to be true for those in zone 7b and warmer!
These crops would include things like summer squash, cucumbers and snap beans. Additionally you can plant crops like white potatoes to harvest before the frost.
3. Deadhead and Prune Your Plants
Regularly deadhead spent flowers on your perennial and annual plants encourages new blooms. Pruning is also critical to maintain shape, remove damaged or diseased parts, and encourage vigorous growth.
For woody shrubs and bushes, such as roses and hydrangeas, make sure to prune them to maintain their shape and promote healthy growth.
This is also the perfect time to prune many of your perennial herbs such as thyme, oregano, mint, lemon balm, rosemary and lavender!
Pruning at this time gives your perennial plants a chance to bush out and put on new growth prior to the frost. You can also use the pruned tops to start new plants indoors which can allow you to enjoy more fresh herbs indoors throughout the winter.
4. Watering Your Garden Wisely
As August typically brings hot, dry weather, make sure to water your plants consistently and deeply. Water your garden early in the morning or late in the evening, when temperatures are cooler, to ensure your plants absorb the maximum moisture. Using mulch is an excellent way to help retain soil moisture in your garden.
You could also consider setting up drip irrigation, which can be an investment, but completely worth the work in years to come. Drip irrigation could be as simple as adding a timer and drip tape to a raised bed, or as sophisticated as building an entire irrigation system.
5. Harvest Regularly
Regular harvesting not only allows you to enjoy your garden’s bounty but also stimulates further growth in your plants. All plants have the sole purchase of trying to create seeds, which ultimately ensures their survival. They formation of flowers and fruits are the way plants do this.
Picking fruits consistently will encourage plants to produce more. When you allow fruits to become overripe on the vines, the plants will put all of their energy into growing the seeds in the overripe fruit.
Plus, an abundance of harvest means that there is more to use in preserving recipes and to share with your community.
6. Evaluate your space for garden changes
Late summer is a good time to start evaluating what changes you may want to make to the garden. This could look like planning a new raised bed or in ground bed. Transplanting strawberries or other fruit bushes to new locations or planting cover crops to maintain soil health.
All of these tasks do require some foresight and planning for them in the mid to late summer ensures that you have all the requires tools for the tasks in the fall.
7. Save Seeds
Gardening is addictive and can be expensive but if you save seeds, you can lower your costs in the coming years and ensure that you have plants that not only survive in your microclimate, but thrive! Seed saving is one of the best ways to use overripe fruits and can be a great way to build community with fellow gardeners in our area as seed saving swaps can help you share the wealth and receive new varieties you may have wanted to try.
8. Plan Your Fall Garden
Although summer is in full swing, it’s never too early to start planning your fall garden. Start thinking about what you would like to plant and grow in the coming season and prepare any necessary materials and seeds. Preparing early can save you a lot of time and effort when it’s time to plant.
This time of year is also a great time to sow those fall seeds in the ground. They will germinate quicker and with a little care such as the use of shade cloths and consistent watering your fall plants can thrive!
August is an exciting month for gardening and a crucial time to maintain and enhance your garden’s health and productivity. Following these tips will lead you towards a thriving garden teeming with color and abundance. Happy gardening!