Late Summer Gardening Tips
For those who get a second wind during the later half of the summer, there are many garden tasks that can be accomplished during the late summer.
The ground is soft enough, after so much rain, to weed easily and quickly. Annual seed, which may not have sprouted earlier in the season, may do so now. Reduced priced annuals can be dotted into the beds and spring annuals should be fertilized in preparation for the second half of the summer.
My zucchini were attacked and devastated by the squash borer, as I took no precautions against them. I’ve yanked the wilted plants, set the groundhog-size zucchini in the sun to dry as gourds, and weeded the area where the two plants died. I fertilized heavily and tomorrow I will set up two bamboo tepees, and find a summer annual vine to plant at their base. I may even plant the potatoes, paper bag and all, that have sprouted by the back door.
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Tomato plants may by this time be overgrown and unproductive. Tomato plants should be pruned now to create more compact growth. Diseased or insect infested areas can be removed and the plant reconfigured to give you space to refertilize. Tending to the tomatoes now will insure a good crop of tomatoes into the fall.
There are two perennials in particular that may be divided and replanted during the last, hottest months of the summer. German iris may be lifted now. I say lifted because the clumps of rhizomes run horizontally across the ground, and a space should be used to cut around them to about 6 inches and then raise the shallow disc of roots. They can be worked apart, the leaves cut to 4-5 inches and replanted.
Oriental poppies can be moved and divided now, and this is the only time when they can be done successfully. Dig up the clump, tease apart the divisions, and replant the crowns 2-3 inches below the soil surface.
As the weather begins to cool, prepare your garden for a more temperate and colorful fall.
