Late-Summer Gardening Tips

Now, don’t get mad when I say “late-summer.” I didn’t say “summer is almost over.” And winter is still a long way off. But as late summer approaches, there are a few smart moves worth making to keep your plants looking their best.

Water. It’s hot out. You’re thirsty. Your plants are thirsty too. Before you pour yourself a glass of lemonade, make sure your garden is well soaked. At this time of year, most of your plants will be happiest with at least one inch of water a week—maybe even more if the temps are really soaring. The best way to conserve water and satisfy thirsty plants? Set a drip hose at the bottom of each plant for a few hours every couple of days.

Fertilize. Adding fertilizer in August can provide your plants with much-needed vital nutrients. But wait. Before you fertilize, make certain you’ve given your plants plenty to drink. If the soil around them isn’t well hydrated, you could do serious damage to their root systems. For the best results, opt for nutrient-rich organic fertilizer blends. And in areas that are particularly parched, skip the fertilizer altogether.

Mulch. When it gets too hot outside, you might choose to hide out in your air-conditioned home. Plants can’t get away from the heat quite so easily, but you can help them out a bit. Apply a 2- to 3-inch layer of mulch to keep your plants’ root systems cool and conserve water. Organic mulches such as wood gradually decompose back into the soil over time and provide essential nutrients. Inorganic mulches such as recycled glass or plastic won’t provide any added benefits for the soil, but they will last longer.

Rejuvenate. In addition to regularly watering, give your garden some TLC by deadheading spent blooms, weeding, and tending to diseased plants. If your annuals are in bad shape, it’s best to remove them. You can usually save perennials though—just cut them to a few inches above the ground and keep watering them.

Maintain. According to the University of Illinois extension office’s “Home Hort Hints,” to keep your garden looking its best in the heat of the summer you should fill in empty spots formerly home to spring and early-summer plants with late-season bloomers. Try hardy mums, asters, coleus, salvia, and Russian sage. Ornamental grasses are a great option too—they’re low-maintenance, and their graceful yet spiky shapes add contrast to softer plantings.

Check out more late-summer planting ideas from our friends at Better Homes & Gardens and HGTV.

Until tomorrow,
The Home Know-It-All

Comments

[The Home Know-It-All]

Hi Lois:

Sorry I’m so slow responding to your question. I was, alas, busy deadheading my own petunias because I planted older varieties of this pretty flower.

Which is, as it turns out, the beginning of the answer to your question.

I searched high and low (OK, for a while on the Net) for ways to help your daughter avoid the pesky task of deadheading. She won’t like this, but most traditional garden experts and amateur gardeners alike say most annuals (including petunias) should be deadheaded so the spent blossoms don’t turn into seeds. If you get rid of the dead flowers, your petunias will continue to produce new, beautiful buds and blooms.

There are, of course, those in the plant ’em and leave ’em camp who insist they don’t deadhead and their petunias look just fine. But my guess is that you’re a bit of a garden perfectionist, and since you know how lovely petunias look with regular maintenance, you won’t want to forgo that step anytime soon.

But there is good news. Although older varieties of petunias require deadheading to look their best, some newer petunia varieties, like the Wave petunia, are self-cleaning (which means they don’t require deadheading).

So, I propose this solution: Keep deadheading. But convince your lovely daughter to buy you Wave petunias next Mother’s Day.

(Learn more about the Wave petunia at http://www.wave-rave.com.)

Keep reading and asking questions! I love it.

— The Home Know-It-All

[Lois]

I noticed that you recommended deadheading plants to keep them rejuvenated. I keep a fairly large garden and usually give the job of deadheading my petunias to my daughter, which she is less than thrilled about. But she claims that doing this to the petunias makes them long and scraggly, while leaving them be seems to keep the plants more full. I've noticed that she might be right. Could petunias be an exception to this rule of rejuvenation?