What to do when!
Jobs to do in the garden in August and September
1 Keep deadheading perennials, roses and annual bedding as this sends a message to your plants to carry on flowering, rather than produce seed.
2 If you’re going away on holiday group pots together in a sheltered, shady spot to reduce moisture loss. Indoors, place house plants on towels draped into a sink or bucket of water to act as a ‘wick’.
3 Keep bedding plants blooming for longer by applying a high potassium liquid feed, such as Tomorite, once a week until the end of the month. 4 Feed lawns with a summer feed when rain is expected to help take it down to the roots. Spot treat unsightly weeds using a trigger spray weedkiller especially for lawns. 5 Water camellias well, as buds are forming for next spring. 6 Control perennial weeds, such as bindweed, ground elder and dandelions, by digging out roots, or treat with a glyphosate-based weedkiller (shield garden plants with plastic sheet when spraying).
8 There’s still just time to plant autumn-flowering bulbs, such as autumn crocus (colchicum), hardy cyclamen and oxalis – they should hit the shops this month for a short time.
9 Clip evergreens, such as holly, conifer and yew. Keep honeysuckles in check by pruning back by one third after flowering.
10 Give wisteria a summer prune. Cut out the whippy long growths to five or six leaves. Then in winter, the same 7 Fill gaps in borders and pots using brightly coloured heucheras. Before you buy, check leaves for tell-tale notching by vine weevil adults and rootballs for signs of the grubs. growths are reduced again back to two or three buds to encourage short flowering spurs.
11 Good news, now’s the time to mow the lawn less frequently. Do not cut the grass too short, to prevent browning during hot spells. If you need to water, do this before the grass turns yellow. Aerate the ground to allow the water to penetrate more effectively.