August Tips
NOW IS THE TIME TO….
(monthly gardening tips)
Hopefully, your FLOWER BEDS are now a riot of colour, with rudbeckias, heleniums, phlox, penstemon, cosmos and dahlias all looking their best, and you can bask in the glory of all the hard work you did earlier in the year. A little deadheading and cutting back of plants which are past their best will keep everything looking fresh until the asters (Michaelmas daisies) take over.
Beans, courgettes and tomatoes are prolific, but there is still work to be done in the VEGETABLE PLOT.
Constant shallow hoeing will stop weeds growing and will also help to keep in the moisture below the surface.
It is a good time to sow rocket and lettuce for the winter, both of which are surprisingly hardy. They will survive outdoors all winter, and with the added protection of an open ended and well ventilated cloche, won’t even wilt in snow!
Sow Chinese greens and chicory salad mixes as well as lettuce such as Arctic King or Valdor. They can be sown in the garden or in a seed tray for planting out later. Try to sow on a cool day, or later in the day, because lettuce seed becomes dormant if the temperature is high. You will be rewarded with fresh salads all winter.
Other seeds you could think of sowing are Winter Purslane, fleshy leaved, easy to grow, or you can sow Kale for picking as baby leaves or for harvesting in the winter or spring and finally Lambs Lettuce/Corn Salad I know it is a hardy annual but this is the best time to sow it.
Not a tip but perhaps of interest. We found 3 Elephant Hawk Moth caterpillars on one of our fuschias the other day so have a good look at yours. You won't miss them they are about 80 millimeteres long. They should pupate shortly and will become months in about May 2010.
