AUGUST GARDENING IN GAUTENG

We might not be done with winter quite yet, but signs of spring abound. Now is the month to plan your spring garden, prepare your tools for some hard work and get ready for a busy season ahead. 

Spotlight on: Reviving your winter lawn

August is the month for lawn care, so revive yours with a spring treatment:

• Mow lawn short and low.
• Rake your lawn, removing any thatch and winter debris.
• Spike for aeration.
• Feed lawn with a foliage fertiliser, such as slow-releasing Wonder 3:2:1, sustained-release Wonder 7:1:3 or organic, water-wise varieties such as Atlantic Fertilisers Bio Lawn.
• Top-dress with a lawn dressing, and use a layer of topsoil to even out the lawn and fill in any holes.
• In the case of All Seasons Evergreen lawn, a lawn dressing is not recommended. Rather trim lawn as normal and feed with Atlantic Fertilisers Bio Lawn.
  
  

ON YOUR TO-DO LIST FOR AUGUST

Plant & Sow

• Sow the seeds for edible varieties such as nasturtiums, flat-leaf parsley, spinach, Swiss chard, lettuce, rocket, carrots, beetroot, radishes, beans, sweet peppers, tomatoes and celery.
• Plant spring-flowering seedlings such as primulas, calendulas, poppies, snapdragons and stocks.
• Cold-loving alyssum will flourish in spring, so sow these seeds in any bare spots in the garden now.
• Lavender of all types should be planted now for vivid pink-purple colour in summer.

Feed

• Fertilise clematis and fuchsias once every two weeks with Seagro Organic Plant Food, Nitrosol or Multifeed. Pinch out the growing tips to encourage bushier growth and more flowers in summer.
• Feed peach, apricot, plum, nectarine, apple and pear trees with 3:1:5 as they come into flower this month. We recommend 100g for younger trees, and 200g for more established trees.
• Ensure deep pink- or blue-hued hydrangeas by feeding them with Wonder Shake ‘n Grow Pink Hydrangea Plant Food or Wonder Shake ‘n Grow Blue Hydrangea Plant Food (note that the products are different for different colours) once every two weeks.
• Feed winter-flowering bulbs, such as daffodils, with bulb food to supply nutrients for next year’s blooms. Don’t remove the yellowing foliage, as this also helps to feed the bulbs that will create next year’s flower buds.
• Azaleas are beginning to bud, so ensure you are feeding them with Wonder Colourburst to ensure a healthy, full blooming season.

Prune & Trim

• Make sure you prune your roses before the middle of August, if you haven’t already done so.
• Prune cassias, euryops daisies, lion’s ears, plumbagos and poinsettias (if not in flower), mulching afterwards with a thick layer of compost.