Gardening Jobs in August – How to Keep Your Garden Thriving August isn’t the easiest month to keep a garden going. The heat can drag on, and the rain often disappears for weeks, leaving soil to crack, lawns to fade, and the plants you thought were fine to suddenly stop looking their best. This time of year, borders also seem to get messier quicker than you can tidy them, and pots tend to dry out in a matter of hours, rather than days. You’re also at that stage where summer hasn’t quite finished, but you can see autumn creeping in, so you’re stuck between watering, feeding, clearing and planning ahead all at once. What Gardening Jobs Should I Focus on in August? For gardeners in the UK, August is definitely one of the those months where you need to keep on top of the jobs around the garden. You don’t need to re-invent the wheel, rather just stay on top of things. Since weeds grow faster with the heat, regular pulling is certainly worth the effort and will stop weeds from smothering anything nearby. Deadheading flowers keeps borders going a bit longer, and it stops plants wasting energy on seed when you’d rather have colour and removing any tired or dead tree branches will help prolong seasonal colour. Watering is the obvious job, but it’s easy to slip behind, so a setting a routine in the morning or evening makes life a little easier. Mulching also earns its place now as it helps lock in moisture and stops the ground baking hard in dry spells. Should I Mulch My Garden in August? The short answer is yes! Mulching in August is great for your garden as it help to retain moisture when the soil is still a little on the dry side. Its also good for chocking weeds and stopping them from coming back through. Placing a layer of mulch around trees and shrubs keeps roots cooler, which matters when the sun has baked the ground for days on end. You don’t need anything fancy either, wood chips, compost or even leaf mould all do the job, and they all break down over time anyway which just further improves the soil. Just make sure you spread it evenly and avoid piling it against the base of plants, as that can trap damp in the wrong places. How Often Should I Water Trees and Plants in Hot Weather? Hot weather always shows up the plants and Trees that don’t cope so well, and the only way to help them is with proper watering. Trees don’t need you out there every day with a hose, but they do better with a heavy soak once or twice a week so the water sinks right down rather than sitting on the surface. Pots are another story and they can sometimes dry out within a matter of hours, so they’ll need checking every day and topped up when they look thirsty. The cooler parts of the day, morning or evening, are when it counts most because the soil has a chance to hold on to it. Which Plants Need Feeding in August? Plants in containers always ask for the most in August, they get watered so often that nutrients just wash straight through. A liquid feed every week or two is enough to keep them upright and flowering, otherwise they start to fade. Fruiting trees can be greedy now as well, apples and pears especially, because they’re putting everything into swelling fruit. A slow-release fertiliser works, or a liquid feed if that’s what you’ve got to hand. Watch potted trees more closely than those in the ground, as they’ll show tired leaves or stunted growth far quicker. How Can I Prepare My Garden for Autumn in Late August? By the end of August, your garden will start to show signs of slowing down, even if a few trees or plants are still giving you decent colour. You may start to spot tired leaves, stems that have flopped, and the odd patch that looks untidy, so it’s worth going through and clearing what you don’t want to sit around and rot. There’s no need to think of it as a big job, just tackle it little and often. If your pots are fading, tip them out or add fresh compost to squeeze a few more weeks from them. It’s also the point where you can plan ahead, because your soil will soon hold more moisture and autumn planting usually takes well once cooler nights set in, especially if you plan to plant any bare-root trees. Little by Little is Key to Garden Preparation August can sometimes feel a little relentless when it comes to gardening, but it’s the small jobs that make the big differences. Watering, feeding and a bit of garden clearing will soon add up, and they’re what carry your trees and plants through the last stretch of summer. If you aim to keep it steady rather than trying to do everything in one go, by the time autumn settles in you’ll have space that’s ready for the next round of planting. If you’re planning ahead, Trees Direct has a range of helpful guides for what to plant when the cooler weather makes it easier to get things in the ground. BACK TO ARTICLES
