Hottest month of the year? Not always! Especially the second half when the days start to cool down.
One of the worst parts of August are the weeds! They seemed to have sprung up quickly – and they are now pretty large (at least we can see them better)! If you haven’t paid attention to weeding beds and sidewalk, now is definitely the time to get moving, since our Autumns are often long and beautiful. Many of the sidewalk and flower bed weed sprays are now much more human and environmentally safe— so do check out Stanley’s for some of the newer versions. Spraying sidewalks now will have you looking pretty good right up to Trick or Treat Day.
This is also the time that your perennial Asters and Mums should be getting bushy but still low from all that pinching you did early in the season. Don’t touch them now if you want a nice bloom starting Labor Day and beyond. Your other annuals and perennials can still use a lot of dead heading and pinching now, knowing that they have another 2 1/2 months of cooler blooming.
Even though we are getting some thunderstorms, don’t forget your containers, which dry out fast —especially window boxes. Window boxes often don’t get the rain due to the roof overhang, and fool— us until they wilt!
You will probably also notice that much of your grass looks brown or dead. Most likely it is not dead but dormant. Grass needs cooler weather temperatures to do well, so cut it a little bit less and higher in August —water if you can—and by September your grass should be starting to come back.
August does have some beautiful cool days when it finishes up, and it’s a great month to do a good prep for the wonderful season of Fall!
