Gardening Jobs: August

Flowers

• Collect seeds as they ripen, from plants such as aquilegias, sweet peas and love-in-a-mist, choosing a dry day
• Deadhead dahlias and other perennials to encourage a constant display of blooms
• Keep camellias and rhododendrons well watered through late summer while their flower buds are forming
• Prune lavender once flowering is over to maintain a compact, bushy shape, but avoid cutting into old wood
• Prune rambling roses, removing up to a third of stems that have flowered, and tie the rest to supports
• Keep pots and hanging baskets flowering by watering and deadheading regularly, and add tomato feed fortnightly
• Take softwood cuttings of woody herbs, including lavender and hyssop, choosing non-flowering shoots
• Sow hardy annuals in sunny spots to provide early summer colour next year
• Set up an automatic watering system for pots and hanging baskets if you’re going away on holiday – in the case of a hosepipe ban, drip or trickle irrigation systems are usually exempt, check your local water board for restrictions
• Strim or mow areas of wildflower meadow, now that the plants have scattered their seeds
• Take softwood cuttings from penstemons, choosing healthy, vigorous, non-flowering shoots
• Remove any spent hardy annuals if you don’t want them to self-seed
• Plant autumn bulbs, such as colchicums, sternbergia and nerines, in pots and borders
• Save seed from Aquilegias for more blooms next year

Fruit and veg

• Be vigilant for signs of tomato and potato blight, removing affected plants immediately to prevent spread
• Summer prune both free-standing and trained apple trees, to encourage good fruiting in future years
• Plant well-rooted strawberry runners into new beds
• Pinch out the tops of outdoor tomatoes, as further flowers are unlikely to produce fruits that have time to ripen
• Order saffron crocus bulbs (Crocus sativus) to plant in September, so you can harvest your own saffron this autumn
• Use netting or fleece to protect blackberries and autumn raspberries from birds
• Lift onions and shallots once their tops die down, then leave to dry in the sun
• Cut back leaves on grapevines to let the sun ripen the fruits
• Sow hardy crops such as land cress, rocket and lamb’s lettuce for winter pickings
• Harvest fresh herbs to freeze in ice cubes for winter use, or to hang up and dry, then store in jars
• Plant a kiwi plant, to climb over a trellis, fence or arbour
• Water crops regularly, especially during hot weather, use water from a water butt if possible. In periods of drought, there may be a hosepipe ban so water your crops with a watering can
• Plant blueberry bushes into acid soil

Greenhouse

• Set up a capillary matting system to ensure plants have enough water if you’re going away on holiday
• Plant cold-stored potato tubers in large tubs in a greenhouse or cool porch, for harvesting at Christmas
• Pouring water over the greenhouse floor every morning during hot weather can help to increase humidity – during periods of drought try to use grey water to help reduce mains water use
• Plant up pots with ‘Paper White’ narcissus bulbs for fragrant indoor displays this Christmas
• Remove the lower leaves of cordon tomatoes up to the lowest truss, to let more light and air reach the fruits
• Start watering dormant cyclamen to bring them back into growth after their summer rest
• Plant autumn flowering bulbs, such as nerines, lachenalia and veltheimia in pots indoors, for autumn and winter colour
• Look out for pests and diseases on greenhouse plants, and treat any you find immediately
• Harvest tomatoes, cucumbers and chillies regularly to encourage more fruits to form
• Tackle vine weevil infestations by watering pots with a solution of biological control nematodes
• Shade delicate plants in the greenhouse to avoid sun scorch on hot days

House plants

• Feed houseplants once a week with liquid fertiliser, continuing through to autumn
• Water your house plants more regularly as the temperatures warm and light levels increase, check the soil before watering.
• Repot any houseplants that have become top heavy or pot bound into larger containers
• Ensure house plants are not getting scorched by summer sunshine. Either move further from the window or choose house plants that will thrive in a sunny spot
• Some house plants, like snake plants, are particularly prone to collecting dust on their leaves. So be sure to give these a wipe regularly
• Put houseplants outside for the summer in a warm, sheltered spot to enjoy the fresh air and extra light
• Take leaf cuttings from houseplants, including African violets and begonias
• Take leaf cuttings from succulents, such as echeverias, crassula and sedums
• Check your house plants for pests like aphids, scale insects, thrips and mealybugs
• Take large-leaved houseplants into the garden and hose them down to clean off accumulated dust

Garden maintenance

• Cut laurel hedges with secateurs rather than a hedgetrimmer, to avoid half-cut leaves that turn brown
• Clear weeds from cracks in paving and driveways before they get established
• Remove problem lawn weeds, digging them out
• Sow green manure to fill any bare ground
• Summer prune wisteria by shortening all long sideshoots to about 20cm
• Keep deadheading border plants, unless you want to collect their seeds
• Remove suckers from roses or around the base of trees
• Collect seeds and ripe seed pods from your favourite flowers and vegetables
• Prop up any clumps of tall border plants that are starting to flop, using canes and string, or twiggy sticks
• Prepare soil for sowing a lawn or laying turf during September and October
• Go on regular snail hunts, especially on damp evenings, to reduce populations
• Turn compost to speed up decomposition

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