Almanac

What to do in the garden in July & August

ABOVE: Root coleus cuttings now.

There is always something that needs to be done in the garden. So before you read the suggestions below please follow the directive in the next sentence. Ready? Take a walk in your garden with no pruners, shovels, or buckets for weed collecting. You can simply wander or bring a notebook or camera to record your gardens at a certain moment in time. Lovely, isn’t it? Ok, now let’s get to work!

FLOWERS AND GRASSES

Raise the height of your mower to three inches. This shades sun-loving weeds, cools roots, and cuts down the need for watering.

Slugs? Remove damaged leaves. Use beer in a container at soil level to drown slugs or lay down a piece of wood— slugs gravitate toward the underside of the wood and can be scraped off the next day. Copper tape around plants will also repel them.

Weed!

Divide oriental poppies and bearded irises.

Continue removing faded annual flowers to promote new flower production. Or plant some new annuals.

Do the same for container plants. Top dress containers. Remove and replace faded plants.

Root cuttings of coleus, strobilanthus, and scented geraniums for use indoors later.

Have some autumn crocus corms? Plant about three inches deep now or they will bloom without being planted.

VEGETABLES, FRUITS, AND HERBS

Protect any fruit (elderberries, raspberries, etc.) you want to keep away from birds with netting. (You may wish to share some of the fruit with the birds, though.)

Plant new leafy greens now for a fall harvest.

Continue harvesting herbs—dry, freeze, or enjoy now.

Keep an eye on your garlic. The leaves begin to brown in July. Take samples of hard neck and soft neck to gauge readiness for harvest. (Soft neck garlic tends to mature about two weeks before hard neck.)

WOODY PLANTS

Avoid pruning spring flowering woody trees or shrubs. You can, however, remove dead or remove crossing branches now. Keep them well watered.

GENERAL

Take the time to look closely for insect damage. Use Integrated Pest Management in your approach to minimize damage to pollinator species, other beneficial insects, and the environment.

Make sure that there are floating plants in your pond to help fish escape direct sun. Provide fish caves for protection both now and later in the season. Make sure beneficial bacteria are part of your pond upkeep.

Continue to add compost or well-rotted manure to your gardens.

Keep birdbaths and fountains clean and full of fresh water.

Provide puddling stones for butterflies and water for bees and other pollinator species. Shallow containers with pebbles keep them from drowning when sucking up water.

Kill Japanese beetles by knocking them into a container of detergent water. It not only kills them but makes you feel good as well!