We couldn’t be more excited that we are actually getting rain this month! We know it’s been a long time so for those of you who forgot what rain is, it’s the wet stuff that falls from the sky. Rain can help the yard in ways that your average watering just can’t compare to. You’ve probably noticed that since the rain, the lawn may look greener, the bedding plants have grown faster, and the weeds have taken off in size and numbers. That is because the rain contains nitrates that are 100% natural and since the nitrates are already dissolved, they have an amazing effect on your yard. That will influence this months’ checklist…
>Weeds are everywhere!
Plants love a good rainfall; unfortunately, so do weeds. It’s only after a good week or so of rain that you notice how much weed seed you really had just waiting to get wet and germinate. Not only weed seed, but also unwanted grass seed that you didn’t even know you had in your beds and gravel. Usually at this point, hand weeding is not an option anymore (unless you’re lucky and it’s not too bad). It’s time to consider chemical applications to get those weeds under control.
> Get another burst of flowers
Make sure to keep up with the deadheading. The rain helps jumpstart flowers and encourages new blooms to appear. Check for and remove spent flowers to allow new blooms, which may continue to appear well into September.
>What should be pruned?
This month you can relax a bit on the pruning. We are experiencing temperatures that most trees definitely don’t like to be trimmed in. However, some flowering shrubs may be ready to trim. For example, Spanish Brooms and Forsythia should be done blooming those vibrant yellow flowers, so now would be the time to remove branches with spent flowers and add some shape to the shrub (never prune them before or during flowering). Pruning on other shrubs should be restricted to crossing branches, unsightly stragglers and deadwood.
>Weeds are everywhere!
Plants love a good rainfall; unfortunately, so do weeds. It’s only after a good week or so of rain that you notice how much weed seed you really had just waiting to get wet and germinate. Not only weed seed, but also unwanted grass seed that you didn’t even know you had in your beds and gravel. Usually at this point, hand weeding is not an option anymore (unless you’re lucky and it’s not too bad). It’s time to consider chemical applications to get those weeds under control.
> Get another burst of flowers
Make sure to keep up with the deadheading. The rain helps jumpstart flowers and encourages new blooms to appear. Check for and remove spent flowers to allow new blooms, which may continue to appear well into September.
>What should be pruned?
This month you can relax a bit on the pruning. We are experiencing temperatures that most trees definitely don’t like to be trimmed in. However, some flowering shrubs may be ready to trim. For example, Spanish Brooms and Forsythia should be done blooming those vibrant yellow flowers, so now would be the time to remove branches with spent flowers and add some shape to the shrub (never prune them before or during flowering). Pruning on other shrubs should be restricted to crossing branches, unsightly stragglers and deadwood.
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