15 gardening tips for August

Summer is in full swing! Make the most of your garden with our top 15 August tips. Enjoy vibrant flowerbeds and abundant harvests while we guide you to maintain a thriving outdoor space.

Top 15 gardening tips for August

1. Keep your flowerbeds blooming! Regular deadheading of roses, daylilies, dahlias, and cosmos will encourage continuous flowering and provide you with a constant supply of beautiful cut blooms.

2. Ensure camellias and rhododendrons don't dry out. Regular watering in dry weather is essential for abundant blooms next year.

3. Keep your lavender looking its best by trimming faded flowers. Be gentle and avoid cutting into old wood. Instead, prune just above new leaf buds for healthy regrowth.

4. It's time to give your rambling roses a trim! Remove every third old stem and secure any loose branches to their supports. Shorten side shoots by about two-thirds for a tidy and healthy plant.

5. Keep your wisteria in check and encourage stunning blooms next year by summer pruning. Cut back new, long shoots to five or six leaves from the main plant.

6. Keep container plants hydrated during dry spells and boost flowering with a fortnightly feed of high-potash liquid fertilizer, like tomato feed. For best results, water your plants thoroughly before fertilizing to prevent root damage and optimize nutrient absorption.

7. Your annuals, like nigella and poppies, are ready to share their seeds! Collect the ripe seeds in paper envelopes and save them for next spring's planting. Don't forget to label the envelopes to keep track of your varieties.

8. Don't forget your garden's wildlife in this hot weather. Keep bird baths and ponds filled with fresh water for thirsty birds and insects to cool down and drink.

9. Extend your garden's beauty into autumn with nerines and colchicums. These stunning flowers will bloom just as other plants begin to fade.  

10. Once your raspberry harvest is complete, it's time to prune. Cut back all the old canes that bore fruit this year right down to the ground.

11. Keep your courgette and bean plants producing by harvesting regularly. It's also harvest time for potatoes, tomatoes, beetroot, onions, and carrots.

12. Boost your container-grown courgettes, chilli peppers, and tomatoes with a fortnightly feed of high-potassium liquid fertilizer to encourage abundant fruit production.

13. Don't let salad season end! Sow lamb's lettuce, mizuna, and rocket for a continuous supply of fresh, tasty leaves from autumn to early winter.

14. Help hedgehogs prepare for hibernation by providing food and water. A meat-based cat or dog food is ideal, but avoid bread or milk as these can harm them.

15. Give your lawn a break in hot, dry weather. Mow less frequently and set your mower to a higher cutting height to protect the grass.

Give your garden a late summer makeover! Our St Albans garden centre is brimming with gorgeous shrubs and perennials to refresh your tired borders.