Gardening Ideas For The Month Of August
Yes, we know the weather’s been rubbish but fingers crossed things are about to change. For all you keen gardeners, here’s a list of the top jobs to do in the garden this August.
Onions, hedges and roses
Lift onions and shallots by loosening them and resting them on top of the soil to ripen. Then hang up to dry before putting into storage.
Cut yew, hornbeam and beech hedges; use a ground sheet to collect the clippings.
Cut back the older stems of rambling roses, now they have finished flowering, and tie in any new, vigorous stems while they are still pliable.
Cuttings, seeds and compost
Make a note of any lacklustre areas of your borders so that you can plan where to plant flowers that will bloom in August for next year. Try sedum, hardy cyclamen and Aster novi-belgii (Michelmas daisy) for some late-summer colour.
Take cuttings from tender plants, such as fuchsias and pelargoniums. Place several in a three-inch pot filled with equal parts silver sand and compost, and overwinter them in a frost-free place.
Collect seeds from annual plants. Dry them and place in labelled envelopes for sowing next spring.
Spread well-rotted, friable compost around fruit bushes, rhubarb and asparagus, and anywhere else in the garden that needs feeding.
This month’s garden tips
Be creative with topiary
Simple box spheres, cones or obelisks will add symmetry, form and style to a garden – and a sense of fun if topped with an animal or bird shape. Box thrives if planted straight into the ground; water well and trim into shape every June. Containers of box need monthly feeding and lots of water in summer.
Preparing for bulbs
Get your garden ready for spring-flowering bulbs; crocus, narcissi, muscari and alliums can be planted in September, but leave tulips until early November. Plant at twice the depth of the bulb and create a sweeping effect with large numbers of the same variety.
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