Your August Green Gardening Tips
Although your planting is done, don’t think your green gardening responsibilities are finished yet! August is the month of pruning, testing, and freshening up your organic gardens. So before you decide to that that family vacation you’ve been dying to take, take these precautions and check to make sure your garden is growing and healthy.
- Ignore the Foul Mold
- When you have recently laid mulch on your garden beds, it is normal for certain slime mold to develop. It will have a bright yellow mass that eventually changes to pale gray spores. Although the look of it might be unsavory, the actual mold is not harmful to your plants. In fact, once it hits the gray stage, if disturbed will erupt in a cloud and layer your plants with a layer of dust.
- Order Spring Bulbs
- Ordering spring bulbs now shows your true expertise as a green gardener because it will allow you to take your pick on any selection of bulbs you want for fall delivery.
- Cut back Perennials
- Cut them back only if they have already bloomed! This encourages a second flowering, as well as a tidy, compacted re-growth of the leaves. Coneflowers, catmint, early season salvias, daisies and lamb’s ears are all perennials that should be hedged.
- Conduct a Lawn Soil Test
- You can also test the soil in September, as long as it is before the traditional fall renovations of your green garden. The lawn soil tests will tell you how much fertilizer and liming your lawn needs, as well as gives you the nutrient levels, pH and organic matter.
- Freshen the Garden
- This is a general to-do that you should do every few months anyway. Specific clean-up tasks to do in August include cutting back the spent perennials, wedding beds, trimming leggy annuals and laying new mulch.
- Check Tomato Plants before Leaving
- If your plans for a family vacation are finally developing, make sure to check your tomato plants for ripening fruit before you leave. Tomatoes that are just starting to redden can actually ripen in any sunny area; bring them with you in a long car ride and put them on the dashboard! If you aren’t going to be traveling in a sunny place, offer them to friends or family members.
- Pull up Crabgrass
- Make sure you keep an eye out for crabgrass and pull up the clumps before the seeds ripen. For stubborn clumps, dampen the soil around the crabgrass the night before, then use a sharp knife or hoe to dig it out – otherwise pull it up by hand.
