Gardening Tips August

August is a fantastic month for gardening. Although the summer is starting to wind down, flowers continue to flourish and provide beautiful blooms keeping the garden looking bright and colourful. Warmer weather can flush essential nutrients out of the soil, which will need replacing maintain plant health moving into autumn. It’s important to keep your plants and shrubs fed to keep them in good condition for the rest of the year.

Ready for the last of the summer gardening? Here are our top tips for keeping your garden in shape throughout August.

What to do in your garden in August

August is the month to reap what you sow. Most crops will be maturing, and early summer blooms will be giving way to the stunning heady pom poms of dahlias and other late summer stunners.

Deadheading your flowers

One of the most important gardening jobs this month is staying on top of deadheading. Regularly removing faded blooms from dahlias, roses and bedding plants encourages fresh flowers and can extend your blooms well into September.

August is also a good time to tidy up perennials and refresh borders. After flowering, trim back plants like hardy geraniums to encourage fresh flowers. If you have lavender in your garden, it can now be trimmed back once flowering has finished to prevent it becoming too woody and keep it in the best condition for next year.

Maintaining your garden in the heat

Maintaining the health of your plants throughout the end of the summer months is a must. Water borders and containers thoroughly in the early morning or evening and add a feed like Vitax Q4 All Purpose Liquid Plant Food or Vitax Fruit & Vegetable Feed once a week to help plants and crops stay healthy and blooming.

Late summer pruning

Now is the time for some light pruning and tidying of your trees, shrubs and hedges. Shrubs, such as wisteria and climbing roses, need a light trim once their main flowering display is over. By removing any unruly shoots you can keep the shrub tidy and reduce the risk of wind damaging the branches later in the year. Hedges can also have a final trim this month to sharpen their outline before autumn growth slows, making the whole garden look more polished.

If you’d like more of your favourite shrubs, August is a good time to take ripe cuttings from plants and propagate them in pots for planting next year.

What should I plant in August?

Most crops will be maturing now, and early summer blooms will be giving way to late summer stunners. Keep the bright summer colours blooming into autumn by planting dahlias, abelia and hibiscus.

Preparing plants for the rest of the year

This month is ideal for sowing seeds such as marigolds, cornflowers and Californian poppies directly into the ground, as the warmer soil helps them germinate well and establish strong root systems before the temperatures begin to drop. Hardy annuals sown at this time often settle in beautifully and can give you an earlier, stronger display next season.

Preventing pests

Pests can be a problem in August, especially in warm UK gardens. Wasps, for example, are often more noticeable at this time of year, and aphids, slugs, snails and beetles can still damage leaves and late crops. Lawns can also be affected by pests such as leatherjackets, which may leave patches of grass looking thin or tired.

Pests are not ideal when looking to plant new flowers, so the best way to tackle any pest problem is to check plants regularly and act quickly if you spot damage. Pick ripe fruit promptly, clear away fallen fruit and remove pests by hand where possible. Keeping plants fertilised and healthy can also reduce stress, making them less vulnerable to attack. Encouraging birds and other wildlife is another way to keep pest levels low.

Want to know more about keeping your garden in top condition throughout the year? Read our month-by-month expert tips and guidance on our Blogs & News page.