Category: monthly garden tasks

To Do in the Garden: August 2026

On By durhammastergardenersIn Accidental Cottage Garden, garden tasks, Gardening calendar, gardening during drought, gardening in NC, monthly garden tasks, Uncategorized

By Gary Crispell, NC State Extension Master Gardener SM volunteer of Durham County (aka the Accidental Cottage Gardener)

So, after nearly a year of minimal to no rain, we have been deluged.  Not complaining here, but it sure would be nice to spread the precipitation out just a little more evenly.  At deadline time 8.64” of the stuff has passed through the rain gauge with more predicted between now and the end of July.  Needless to say, (but I’m gonna say it anyway) the Accidental Cottage Garden is bonkers.  There are 19 varieties of plants in bloom.  They are listed at the end of the post.

Zinnias and Cosmos are easy to start from seed and bloom abundantly in the Accidental Cottage Garden despite the weird weather. (Image credit: Gary Crispell)

All these plants have been remarkably nonchalant about the drought.  They looked sad for a while, but as soon as they got a drink…they took off.  The seeds that I sowed in April, Zinnia (Zinnia elegans) and Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnata), and that I stopped watering in mid-May are just fine, thank you.  Bloomin’ their li’l hearts out, they are.

Enough about my compact world.  The calendar is what you came for and here it is.

Lawn Care

Several species of grubs are actively feasting on lawn grass roots (probably yours) this time of the year.  If you notice fist size brown spots on your lawn, it might just be grubs.  Carefully dig up a spot to see if there is a grub down there.  They are usually white or cream colored with a darker head.  They are the larvae of various beetles, including the Japanese kind.  There are several products on the market with which to treat them (i.e., kill ‘em dead).  There are both liquid and granular products.  Always read the label and follow the instructions. If you plan to renovate or reseed a cool season grass (fescue, bluegrass, perennial rye) lawn, then toward the end of the month is the time to prep (spray out weeds, core aerate, amend the soil, etc.) the area in question.

Fertilizing

If you are growing strawberries, they would be ecstatic if you threw a little nitrogen fertilizer in their general direction. DO NOT, he repeated, fertilize trees or shrubs between now and December at which time you may give them their holiday bonus in balanced fertilizer pellets.

Planting

Do you like to start plants from seed?  It is fun to watch them sprout and develop. So, have I got a present for you!  It’s time to get dirt under your fingernails and your shirt and shorts dirty.  Start by sowing pansy seeds in flats.  Pick a variety you can’t get at the big box store and be the envy of your neighbors when you set them out in September.  There are also several perennials that can be direct sown now to get a jump on spring: Stokes aster (Stokesia leavis), hollyhock (Alcea rosea), and larkspur (Delphinium elatum and several more species) are good ones to try.  There are many others.  Search “perennial seeds” to learn more.  Prep the bed by lightly loosening the soil surface.  (No more deep tilling.  Leave the sequestered carbon where it is.)  Then sow the seeds per instructions on the package (or YouTube, naturally).

Plant a fall garden and eat fresh veggies for Thanksgiving.  Salad greens such as Chinese cabbage, kale, many lettuces, arugula, and mustard will survive frost and light freezes.  Root crops like beets, turnips, rutabagas, radishes and carrots will keep you in fresh vegetables nearly to the winter solstice.  Other fast-growing veggies like winter squashes and cucumbers will be a pleasant surprise for your Thanksgiving dinner guests.

Pruning

Forget I even mentioned it.  I would leave this topic blank, but that would raise more questions than telling you to put away all the pruning equipment until after Thanksgiving.  The one exception would be if a named tropical cyclone lays waste to your landscape.  In that case pruning would be appropriate.  (The HOA would no doubt insist.)

Spraying

Not a whole lot different from July.  The same heat-seeking, sap sucking, miserable insects and arachnids that found your garden to be a delectable feast in July are still there and many of them will be there until frost.  Deal with it.  Oh, right.  Here’s how.  Coniferous evergreens (juniper, cryptomeria, chamaecyparis, arborvitae, Leyland cypress, etc.) are a favorite target for spider mites.  Azaleas and pyracantha will still be hosting lace bugs which are active year-round whenever leaf surface temperatures are above 40 degrees F.  And anything and everything actively growing will attract aphids.

While we’re here (talking about insects) let’s have a conversation (monologue, actually) about white flies.  For years they were the bane of my existence.  I could not rid our hibiscus of them.  This was serious because we have four hibiscus plants in 25-gallon pots.  Them suckers would be 8 feet tall if’n I didn’t cut ‘em back every winter afore puttin’ ‘em in the garage (which seriously crowds the Mustang).  They get wheeled out whenever there are going to be three or four nights above freezing.  So, you see, we kinda like our hibiscus.  Back to the dratted whiteflies.  They are pernicious little…well, you know where that was going.  I finally had success using an organic horticultural oil.  It smothers all five (yes, five) stages of their life cycle (egg, crawler, nymph, pupae, adult).  There are numerous other lethal chemicals available.  See NCSU Entomology Insect Notes: Greenhouse Whitefly; Dr. Steven Frank and Dr. James Baker professors of entomology and plant pathology.

Only spray when necessary.  Know your enemy (pest I.D.).  ALWAYS read the label and FOLLOW the instructions.  Did I repeat myself?  It’s important.  That’s why.  Stay safe.  Wear the proper clothing and equipment.  This “stuff” can kill you or at least make you very ill.  Be smart.  I know you are.  You read this.

Propagation

You can still take cuttings of most trees and shrubs.

Purple coneflower is a star in the late summer garden. (Image credit: Gary Crispell)

So, if you really love the August heat you can do these:

Walk around the yard with your landscape plan (Everyone has one, right?) to see if there are changes you want to make.

Start a neighborhood pool concerning when the next rainstorm will pass by to the north or south.

Install an outdoor shower and live under it.

Catch the odd not blistering evening and dine al fresco on the deck or patio.

Stay hydrated. Cool and safe.  September is just around the corner.

Accidental Cottage Gardener Plant List:

  • Black-eyed susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
  • Balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus)
  • Daylily (Hemerocallis x “August Flame”)
  • Blanket flower (Gallardia pulchella)
  • African marigold (Tagetes erecta)
  • Cosmos (Cosmos sulphureus, C. bipinnata)
  • Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
  • Zinnia (Zinnia elegans)
  • Evening primrose (Oenothera lumarkiana)
  • Chinese forget-me-not (Cynoglossum amabile)
  • Canadian goldenrod (Solidago altissima)
  • Canna lily (Canna x generalis)
  • Butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii)
  • Cypress vine (Ipomoea quamoclit)
  • Mexican hat (Ratibida columnifera)
  • Prairie sunflower (Helianthus petiolaris)
  • Hydrangea “Limelight” (Hydrangea macrophila ‘Limelight’)

Additional Reading and Resources

Essential Gardening Tips for Drought Conditions

Article shortlink: https://wp.me/p2nIr1-7TN

Edited by Astrid Cook-Dail, NC State Extension Master GardenerSM volunteer of Durham County

To Do in the Garden: August 2025

On By durhammastergardenersIn Accidental Cottage Garden, garden tasks, gardening NC, monthly garden tasks

Gary Crispell, NC State Extension Master GardenerSM volunteer of Durham County

August. Can’t be much worse than July this year—unless the rain stops altogether. Now, I prefer hazy, hot, and humid, but this is carrying things a bit too far. When my parents lived in Arizona, my mother would brag about their “dry heat.” I’m here to tell you, 110°F and above is hot. Wet, dry, in between – it doesn’t matter. It is HOT

The Accidental Cottage Garden is adapting to climate change by rearranging its bloom schedule. Bloom times are arriving earlier than “the book” indicates. My personal observations (and “scientific” estimation) are that everything has been about three weeks ahead of “the book” ever since March. The increase in temperature – especially nighttime temps – combined with generous (sometimes excessive) rainfall has pushed bloom times forward.

The ACG already looks like mid to late August (read: very sad). A group of Extension Master Gardener volunteers came to the garden to practice photographing plants and blossoms. Unfortunately, many of the most beautiful models had already retired for the season. Not that those remaining are ugly or anything – just that the best display was over three weeks ago. It happens.

Close-up of a wilted Hibiscus flower, showing faded pink petals against a blurred green background.
Close-up of withering black-eyed Susan flowers (_Rudbeckia fulgida_) showing a central brown seed head surrounded by dried yellow petals.

The sad summer garden, worn down by excessive heat and humidity. Left: a droopy Hibiscus sp. (Image credit Jimmi Lazuli) Right: scorched Rudbeckia fulgida. (Image credit: Javin Griffin)

They did get to practice on blanket flower (Gaillardia pulchella), a few black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia fulgida), and a butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa). The balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) is blooming for the second time (‘cause I thwarted its need to seed by removing the spent blooms the first time around). There’s been a bumper crop of purple coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea) and approximately 12,684 evening primroses (Oenothera biennis). WARNING: If you plant one of these, be sure to remove the stems before they go to seed. (Sorry, dry-stemophiles.)

Close-up of Gaillardia pulchella (blanket flower) in bloom, with a dried stalk in the foreground.
Close-up of a pink Echinacea flower, showcasing its petals and central cone, with additional Echinacea blooms blurred in the background.
Close-up view of a purple balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) with detailed petals and veins.
Close-up of yellow evening primrose flowers (_Oenothera biennis_), showcasing their vibrant petals and green foliage.

Toward the end of summer. the garden is tired but still productive. Top three images, from left to right: Gaillardia pulchella, Echinacea purpurea, (Image credit: Javin Griffin) and Platycodon grandiflorus. (Image credit: Jimmi Lazuli)
Below center: Be careful with this native but aggressive beauty – Oenothera biennis, or evening primrose. It will take over your garden if you let it. (Image credit: Plant Toolbox, Andreas Rockstein, CC BY-SA 4.0)C BY-SA 4.0)

That leaves two of my three goldenrods (which I purchased at the Spring Plant Sale): sweet goldenrod (Solidago odora) and early goldenrod (S. juncea), African marigolds (Tagetes erecta), and a lone false vervain (Verbena hastata) to help keep the ACG beautiful.

A vibrant display of orange marigold flowers (_Tagetes erecta_) standing tall among a colorful assortment of other blooming plants in a garden.
A field of blooming purple vervain (Verbena hastata) with slender stems and small flowers, set against a green landscape.
A vibrant cluster of orange butterfly weed (_Asclepias tuberosa_) in full bloom, surrounded by green foliage.

Strong contenders for a sweltering summer garden. From left to right: African marigold (Tagetes erecta), purple or false vervain (Verbena hastata), and orange butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa). (Image credit: Marcia Kirinus)

Okay, okay. I know. It’s a long intro, but the calendar itself is not complicated this month. Therefore, this post won’t take any longer to read than normal. Besides, what were you going to do when the outside temperature is in the triple digits anyway? 

LAWN CARE

Scope out the lawn for grubs. Treat ’em if you find ’em. Otherwise, leave the sprayer hanging in the shed. Late in the month, you can prepare areas that need to be seeded with cool-season grass (fescue, Kentucky bluegrass).

FERTILIZING

If you have strawberries, hit them with a little nitrogen. Do not fertilize trees or shrubbery again until December.

PLANTING

If you’re a start-’em-from-seed kind of person, then by all means—get to it. Sow pansy seeds in flats to be set out in September. Perennials like hollyhock (Alcea rosea), larkspur (Delphinium elatum and friends), and Stokes’ aster (Stokesia laevis) can be sown now for a jump on healthy spring plants.

A lush garden bed overflowing with various leafy greens, including kale, collard greens, and romaine lettuce.
A vibrant cluster of purple and white pansy flowers in a lush green garden setting.

Sow seeds of these cool-season fall crops now to enjoy a harvest later. Left: various greens, including kale, lettuce, arugula, Swiss chard, and bok choy. Right: violets. (Image credit: Marcia Kirinus)

Plant a fall garden. Root crops (e.g., beets, turnips, rutabagas, and radishes) are good to plant now, as are many salad greens (e.g., Chinese cabbage, kale, lettuce, arugula, and mustard). Other fast-growing veggies that are fine to plant now include squash and cucumbers. That should keep you in fresh produce until after Thanksgiving.

PRUNING

Fuhgeddaboudit. No more pruning until the end of November. You get a pass if a hurricane—not associated with PNC Arena—pays a visit.

SPRAYING

Same stuff as last month. Look for spider mites on coniferous evergreens (juniper, arborvitae, Leyland cypress, etc.), lace bugs on azaleas and pyracantha, and aphids on anything green. Maintain your spray programs for roses, fruit trees, and bunch grapes. Watch for worms on cruciferous vegetables (cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, etc.) and borers on squash. Only spray when necessary—and always follow the directions on the label.

PROPAGATION

It’s still okay to take cuttings of shrubbery.

AND IF YOU JUST CAN’T GET ENOUGH OF THE AUGUST HEAT

Check over your landscape plan (I just know you have one) so you’ll be ready for the fall planting season. If (when?) the August thunderstorms skip your yard, try not to run the well dry—or seriously deplete Lake Michie or Little River Reservoir. You could build a compost bin. Dig Irish potatoes. (I dig ’em roasted with olive oil and tarragon.) Stay cool and hydrated. October is only two months away!

Additional Resources

Edited by Marcia Kirinus, NC State Extension Master GardenerSM volunteer of Durham County

Article Short Link: https://wp.me/p2nIr1-6cT