WITH ALL THE chores I’ve been doing because of the heat that persists again this past week, I forgot to give you your August to-do list. So, let’s review your to-do list for the last trimester of summer.
1. Definitely deadhead.
Right now is the time to pinch and especially deadhead. Summer is waning, the sun is setting earlier every day, rising later and soon the heavy dews will be on the ground.
This means your flowers sense their time is coming to a close and all emphasis will be on reproduction and ripening seed pods. If there are no old flowers and no newly forming seed pods, then your plant is desperately attempting to procreate and will make even more flowers.
So dead-head now, and several times each week, or your flowers will soon turn brown and die. It’s nature’s way.
2. Sucker shoots suck.
Especially with the hydrological drought we are having, water tables and watering restrictions are stressing your plants, especially your trees, bushes, shrubs and, of course, the orchard.
Sucker shoots, crown suckers, those at the base of the plant (at ground level) and those growing along the branches rob your trees of moisture. Sucker shoots suck up moisture and nutrients at alarming rates. Just observe their rate of growth!
They also rob your trees and plants of their fine aesthetic value, so please de-sucker now.
3. Voluptuous fresh vegetables.
You all know I believe the North Olympic Peninsula is like Camelot: Never cold, never hot, no bugs to speak of and incredibly long, long growing seasons.
That means you should plant a new vegetable garden right now, today.
Start radishes, beats, carrots, greens, onions, Swiss chard and garlic.
Look for starter plants of broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy, cabbage and peas. Our autumns are gorgeous, and Jack Frost is not scheduled to visit until late October or early November.
The best salad is the one you organically grow.
4. Putting off pruning?
You have a choice: Shape prune today (no later than this week) removing errant branches, unmanageable growth against your house or outbuildings, those in your view or scraping against your fence or hanging onto your driveway — or wait until November.
Right now, but only this week, you can prune. However, if you wait, the new growth that always results after a prune will be too new and tender to survive well through this winter.
Now is a great time to do a last minute pruning.
5. Bountiful bone meal.
There are few gardening tricks that you can perform that give better results than applying a late-summer bone meal application. Bone meal is the miracle drug of the perennial bulb world.
Spread bone meal in August around all of your bulb plants, perennials, orchard, lawn and flowering shrubs.
Bone meal aids plants in overwintering and increases bloom and fruit production as a bonus round.
6. Pull and plant.
August and early September is a time when many of your summer garden plants begin to fade and die (unless you diligently deadhead).
This then, is the perfect time to pull out any poorly performing summer flowers and plant anew, with plants that will look marvelous come fall.
Perfect plants to purchase and plant now are garden mums, ornamental kale and cabbage, pansies, violas, ornamental grasses, fall flowering sedums, various perennials, snapdragons, carnations, dianthus, Dusty Miller and one of my favorites, coral bells.
Planting these botanical wonders now will have them well “rooted in” and growing come this autumn.
7. Water well.
When you can, and according to local restrictions, deeply soak your fruit trees so they do not abort their fruit due to unseasonable dryness.
Make sure any trees, bushes or shrubs that were planted this year get a good soaking as well, for their root system is still developing, so give them the moisture they need.
Also, do not water your grass.
8. Punish pestilence.
Now is the time to go after bugs, slugs, mice, weeds and disease once again.
As the weather begins to cool down, dew points rise and sunlight wanes.
Let’s make sure we don’t give back all our hard-fought territory to these harmful invaders.
Pull weeds, cultivate, spread pet-safe slug bait, spray insecticidal soap, release one more stage of beneficial bugs — and do not give up now.
9. Buy bulbs.
Now is the time to order bulbs through catalogs and collect different color types and bloom time bulbs at numerous local plant outlets.
It’s also a great time to design new spring-flowering bulb beds, then store them in a cool, dark place.
Do not plant bulbs, however, until the end of October or November. Just buy them now.
Besides, you will need these extra weeks to amass a great diversified collection of bulbs.
10. Clean gutters.
If you haven’t already, get out the leaf blower and clean out your gutters while the metal trough attached to your fascia boards are dry.
Debris that dried in the sun will lift easily out of the gutter, and it will help keep your windows cleaner if removed during the warm summer period.
Remember where the gutters always leak at the corner? Repair leaking gutters with appropriate sealant while the product is easy to apply and working on the ladder is safer.
Clean out debris where the gutter empties into the drain pipe that is filled with roof sediment and rotting materials. Metal edges and asphalt roofing can cut your hands, be sure to wear gloves.
Do work on ladders and rooftops while you are fresh in the day and, if feeling fatigued, finish the work the next day.
Accidents happen more readily when you’re tired, so plan your activities accordingly.
Besides, with all of these chores to do, we want to pace ourselves, drink plenty of fresh water and wear a light-colored, long-sleeved shirt to keep the sun off our tender skin.
Remember, we want to spend our money on plants, not on trips to the doctor … so stay well all!
________
Andrew May is a freelance writer and ornamental horticulturist who dreams of having Clallam and Jefferson counties nationally recognized as “Flower Peninsula USA.” Send him questions c/o Peninsula Daily News, P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles, WA 98362, or email news@peninsuladailynews.com (subject line: Andrew May).
