August is here! To most of us that means summer is drawing to a close and the kids will be back in school before you know it. Hopefully you’ve been able to enjoy the mild weather that we’ve had in St. Louis this season! Here are some of the things you’ll need to remember in your garden this August.
If you are a Dowco client, many of these services on our August Outdoor To Do List will already be scheduled for you!
Outdoor Trees & Shrubs
Powdery mildew is becoming apparent on ornamental plants such as lilacs. This typically is a cosmetic concern and doesn’t cause damage. However common fungicides used for roses will work to cure it.
Water trees by soaking the root system with a hose.
Keep an eye out for spider mite activity especially on burning bushes. Keep them watered and hose them off.
Selectively prune dead wood, diseased, or damaged branches from trees and shrubs. Shape your hedges.
Monitor your plants for diseases such as Fire Blight or Rose Rosette Virus and put in place a budget as needed.
Avoid planting or digging in this hot month, as it will disrupt the root system of your plants.
Garden and Bed Maintenance
Annuals may become overgrown and leggy. If you choose to cut them back follow up with a mild fertilization (suggest Milorganite) to produce new fresh blooms.
Schedule your mid-season bed cultivation to keep a fresh mulch appearance and allow water down to the root zones of your plants.
Apply extra mulch around the roots of trees and shrubs if it’s gotten thin, to help them hold in moisture.
Soak your beds during dry spells.
Plan to order your bulbs and fall annuals now.
Lawn Care & Turf Care
Continue to water! Check your watering and zones frequently as hot weather will take no time to brown out the turf.
Schedule your fall turf renovation with Dowco. We begin the last two weeks of August and continue until October 10th. Dowco guarantees seed germination!
Mow lawns once per week at the highest setting. Skipping mows may be appropriate. If so, please give Dowco 48 hour notice.
Monitor the turf for signs of turf disease and fungus. To minimize diseases, water turf early enough in the day to allow the foliage to dry before nightfall.
Continue to look out for Nutsedge popping up in low, wet spots in the turf.
Grub control should have been applied. Verify control. You should see no more than 10 grubs per one square foot area.
Irrigation Maintenance
If you are going out of town, advise your neighbors to keep an eye on your sprinkler system. Tell them where the backflow is so that they can turn it off should a leak occur.
Use the soaker hose technique for large or new trees.
Install drip irrigation systems to efficiently water your smaller plantings or annuals during the hot summer. This is also handy for watering container plantings while traveling. If this isn’t feasible, be sure to recruit a neighbor to water while you’re gone.
Schedule your second irrigation inspection with Dowco to adjust the times for summer heat.
Read our blog on summer watering tips.
Other Outdoor Maintenance
Japanese beetles should be about done doing their damage and most of the adults are dead since they only have a 1-year life cycle.
Organize and sanitize your garden tools and equipment. Many diseases can be transferred through pruning shears. This can be avoided by diligent cleaning using Clorox.
Request a quote to build a dry creek bed in areas that hold a lot of water to create an efficient & attractive drainage system.
Inspect your retaining walls for strength and endurance. If they are leaning or caving in, request a quote to repair them.
Currently in bloom: Zinnia, Tropical water lily, Hydrangea, Liriope
Dowco is the premier provider of lawn care and landscape maintenance services. We are committed to improving the quality of your life so that you can spend time doing the things you want to do! Our full service menu includes weekly maintenance of your property, plant health visits, and modern site enhancements.
(636) 532-9192
