August has just begun and advice is starting to pour in on what to do in August in the garden. For experienced gardeners, this is routine, but for beginners who want to master gardening, it would be nice to read our article. What to do in August in the garden is not a meaningless question!

For those who don’t know what to do in August in the garden!

The end of July and beginning of August is the beginning of the Great Harvest. Fruits and vegetables invite themselves to the kitchen and to the table, rewarding you for what you planted in the garden in March and for what April was favorable. If you have been waiting like us to see the ice saints pass by in May, you have been harvesting the first tomatoes for a week. So for the harvest, it’s clear, but there is still a lot of work and you want to know what to do in August in the garden.

Rains and storms are a thing of the past, but the consequences combined with the current severe drought need to be remedied.

What to do in August in the garden during a heat wave and lack of water? : Court

We must repair the damage left by the storms a month and a half ago. Full of broken branches that dry out and prevent the growth of bushes and the ripening of seasonal fruits. So take your clean pruning shears and prune the pear tree so that it bears fruit.

In addition to the pruning that is notoriously carried out in winter and that affects all fruit trees, today it is essential to eliminate the dry branches of some varieties of apple trees. Carry out thinning pruning that will improve the ventilation of the trees.

What to do in the garden in August: time to take cuttings

If you plan to prune your lemon tree, we advise against it. The fruiting period of citrus trees, and especially during a strong heat wave, is not favorable. On the one hand, this can disturb ripening, and on the other hand, the cut places will be exposed to the scorching sun and will be deprived of sap. However, you can remove the dried leaves.

Cuttings should only affect certain ornamental shrubs and climbing plants. Do you want to promote the optimization of your cherry laurel or tin laurel that serves as an excellent display screen? Although they are very invasive, you can propagate them by cuttings. Looking at the branches, you notice branches without flowers, 10-15 cm long. Cut them under a node and remove the lower leaves. Then poke in a mixture of potting soil and sand, providing them with the warmth and moisture needed for rooting. The same goes for buddleia, camellia, forsythia, jasmine, boxwood, azalea, fuchsia and berry bushes.

The perennial flowers will divide in August.

August is the best time to dig and divide perennial flowers in your garden, such as hosta, oriental poppy, lily, daylily, ornamental grasses, and bearded lily. Use a shovel to lift the plant out of the ground, being careful not to damage the root ball. When the clump is out of the ground, use a large garden knife or shovel to cut it into small pieces. Then replant smaller pieces or divisions as soon as possible.

Some perennial flowers, such as bearded lilies and ornamental grasses, tend to die back in the middle. When dividing these perennials, cut around the centers and discard the dead tissue into your compost pile.

The month of August in the garden is a good time to combat harmful insects

You know that the fight against pesticides is a double-edged sword and caution is essential. In addition, there are insects to tolerate and others such as aphids and bedbugs to try to eradicate from the garden. They, like mosquitoes, have become overly aggressive in times of extreme heat and drought. So, to get rid of it, instead of neem oil, which you consider very effective, use a decoction of garlic and mint essential oil in a proportion of 10 drops diluted in ½ l of water. Spray infested plants.

Which bulbs to grow and which to plant?

To avoid tangles, be clear about the bulbs of certain plants, especially those of tulips. If your garden was a multicolored carpet in spring, it’s time to remove the bulbs to save them and replant them next year. The leaves have been dead for almost three months and you have even torn them off. Now take a small shovel and try to remove the tulip bulbs that have stored energy.

They are quite dry, but still clean them of the soil, throw away the diseased bulbs and put the good ones in a net hung in a well-ventilated and warm place. Don’t forget them and check them from time to time for the presence of mold.

Of course, there are gardeners who let the bulbs overwinter and this does not prevent them from flowering in spring, others have taken them out just after the flowers have withered and can now plant them in the ground  .  Many ways to “populate” the garden with these beauties.

Ultimately, it is removed and replanted to control the spread and create specific spaces for the tulips. If this is not done, the flowers occupy large loose areas.

What can be planted in August in the garden?

Now is the time to plant cabbage seedlings. On the other hand, if you have water restrictions, it is not a good idea.

Some late variety vegetables whose edible part is in the ground can be sown in August to be harvested in mid-autumn: carrots, radishes, turnips, onions, head lettuce.

Garden work never ends!