Gardening Month by Month - August

AUGUST GARDENING

Another month where the fruits of your labours need to be enjoyed. Normally the best month of the year and there's less to do in the garden now.

Have some of that beer you gave the slugs and enjoy your garden with friends and family. Make the most of it as Summer is all too short some years!

The main tasks and priorities this month are:

Again, the same old tasks need to be done and maintained. These include weeding, watering, mowing, weeding, watering, mowing..... You get the idea.

Now I've mentioned watering, take special care of hanging baskets at this time. They dry out quickly and normally need a fair bit of water daily.

In late August, prune your hybrid roses to make the most of Autumn flowering. Remove around a third of the new, fast growing growth. Remove any dead of weak stems as well, especially in the centre of the plant. Remember to keep them free of aphids and black-spot as much as possible.

Once the Summer flowering shrubs have bloomed and finished flowering, they should be shaped and cut back to keep them neat and tidy.

By now you should be receiving quite a few vegetables from the garden. Harvesting fruit and vegetables, I think, is probably the most rewarding of all gardening tasks.

Knowing that you have grown those fresh potatoes, carrots, peas, cabbage, etc, as they are dished up as home grown food is very rewarding and I would encourage everyone with a large enough garden to set at least a little room to one side for vegetables.