Gardening Tips

The garden in August is full of beautiful blooms and fresh greenery.

After the very wet weather in July, we’re hoping we will enjoy some warm, sunny weather this August and be able to relax in the garden. However, before we can do that we’ll need to catch up on some tasks.

Jobs for the month

• Make the most of the summer flowers and encourage healthy growth by deadheading plants such as summer bedding daily and perennials once a week or every other week. Feed containers and border perennials with a liquid tomato food weekly to encourage them to bloom into the early autumn.
• To top up the late summer colour add some echinacea, lavender or digitalis in flower to attract bees, butterflies and insects. Rudbeckia bloom right through until November and provide an important source of nectar for pollinators.
• Regularly water azaleas, rhododendrons and camellias, as the flower buds for next year will be starting to form. An ericaceous feed now will ensure they create plenty of buds ready for spring.
• Towards the end of August, you can sow some hardy annual flowers, such as marigolds, cornflowers or poppies to overwinter and flower next summer. It’s quick, easy and fun. Plant seeds directly in the ground or pots and protect in winter with a cloche or horticultural fleece. Next year, they’ll bring summer colour to borders and containers and will attract pollinators to your garden.
• Hand weed or hoe the borders before weeds establish and seed. At the end of the month, give hedges a trim to keep them neat through into Autumn.
• Cut back lavenders after flowering, trimming by about 2.5cm and making sure not to cut into old brown wood. This will create a compact and neat shape and encourage the plant to make new shoots ready to flower next spring.
• Get ahead of the game and take a look at our new stock of Spring bulbs coming into store this month – you can start planting crocus, daffodils and alliums.
• Grow salads into the autumn, by sowing quick growing crops such as lettuce, radish, rocket and spinach.

Indoor Gardening

• Continue to water indoor plants frequently, using a liquid feed each fortnight. We’ve some amazing lush and leafy house plants in store, with a wide range of pots to help you transform your living space. Indoor plants give a boost to our wellbeing, choosing plant that are easy to care for will ensure that they stay healthy.
   
• It’s school holiday time, so why not encourage your children or grandchildren to start growing with some microgreens – perfect for little hands and for adding to salads or sandwiches. All you need is a tray – supplied with our instore kits – and you don’t have to wait long to harvest your crop! Cress is ready in around ten days, and herbs such as basil to add to your pasta are just as easy to grow.

Lawn care

Mow lawns lightly and frequently, using a higher setting if it is dry.

Wildlife

• Another idea to entertain the children in the summer holidays is to build a hedgehog home. They need somewhere covered and dry, so try using an upturned sturdy box which you can make a doorway in.
• Clean out birdbaths to prevent disease and continue to top up with fresh water especially on hot days.