August Horticulture Tips from OSU Extension Sevice
The Tulsa County OSU Extension Service offers the following horticulture tips for August compliments of the O.S.U. Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture. For more information contact the OSU Extension Master Gardeners at 746-3701.
Vegetables:
- Start the fall vegetable garden by planting bush beans, cucumbers, summer squash, beets, broccoli, carrots, potatoes, lettuce, etc.
- Soak vegetable seeds overnight prior to planting. Once planted, cover them with compost to avoid soil crusting. Mulch to keep planting beds moist to keep soil cool. Monitor plants for flea beetles and other pests until they get established. Some gardeners use a lightweight fabric row cover to screen out early season pests.
Fruit Trees:
- Continue protective insecticide applications to apples and late peaches. Follow directions on the label as to the number of days to wait before harvest.
Flowers:
- In late August divide and replant spring blooming perennials such as iris, peonies and daylilies if overcrowded. Be sure to replant at the same depth at which they grew. Peonies must not be planted too deep, or they will not re-bloom.
Trees and Shrubs:
- Discontinue deadheading roses by mid-August to help initiate winter hardiness.
- Continue frequent watering of newly-established trees and shrubs. Roots will not have grown far enough outside the original root ball to survive extreme drought.
- Maples may leaf-scorch this month due to hot, dry winds. Make sure they are watered regularly.
Lawns:
- Tall fescue should be mowed at three inches and up to three and one half inches if it grows under heavier shade. Avoid watering too frequently or at nightfall to prevent diseases such as brown patch.
- Deep soakings are better for established lawns than frequent light misting that causes foliar disease problems.
- To convert Bermuda lawns to tall fescue, apply non-selective herbicides, such as RoundUp (glyphosate) right now in preparation for September sowing of tall fescue. Read and follow all label directions.
- http://www.oces.tulsacounty.org
Updated 07-25-2005
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