STIHL GB | STIHL August Garden Guide with Jane Moore | August Gardening Jobs | STIHL GB @STIHLGB | Uploaded August 2023 | Updated October 2024, 4 hours ago.
We’re back with the latest instalment of the STIHL garden guide! This month, Jane Moore showcases jobs to do in your garden in August in the STIHL August Garden Guide video.
Firstly, try to take advantage of rainy weather by putting houseplants outside for some fresh air, or if it’s raining, a good wash and a drink, too.
🔶 Watering Plant Pots
Watering plant pots is one of the most important jobs through the summer, especially when you’re growing plants in garden containers. It doesn’t matter what they are; vegetables, fruit, or flowers, they all rely on you to keep them watered through the summer.
The key thing with watering plant pots is to make sure the plants get a good drink, so water thoroughly. It’s good practice to water a plant once, then go back to it later to give it another soak.
🔶 Five Top Watering Tips
1. Water early in the morning, or late in the evening so the sun doesn’t just burn all that moisture away. Watering in the evening means that the plants have all night to take up that valuable water. If you have a lot of plant pots or a newly planted garden, it might make sense to invest in an automatic system. They’re brilliant if you’re going on holiday, and drip or trickle systems are often exempt from hosepipe bans.
2. Collect water where you can in water butts or use grey water from washing up. Don’t worry about it having detergent in as it will help the compost to absorb the water.
3. Use mulch on your garden borders and veg plots to help retain moisture. This is a layer of material, at least 5cm (2in) thick, applied to the soil whilst its wet. Mulches improve plant growth by adding nutrients or increasing organic matter content, as well as reducing water loss from the soil. But even decorative mulches, like chipped bark and gravel, serve a purpose by suppressing weeds and protecting the soil from drying out.
4. It also makes sense to plant wisely, using drought tolerant plants. This is especially important as our summers are getting hotter. A lot of great plants cope with dry conditions – lots of grasses, herbs like Lavender and Catmint, and Salvias are so easy to grow and flower all summer long.
5. It’s also a good idea to move plant pots into the shade to try to protect them. It’s such an easy thing to do but it makes a huge difference to the plants.
🔶 Cuttings
High summer is a brilliant time to take cuttings of lots of favourite plants. It’s great to have plants for free, and replacements for plants that die. If you’re new to taking cuttings, don’t worry, it’s so easy that you can take lots. Follow the steps below:
- Choose healthy, strong, non-flowering shoots. These should root quickly and soon grow into new plants.
- Remove a few likely looking shoots, but make sure they’re longer than the finished cutting. Cut them just above a leaf on the parent plant.
- Aim to take a cutting not more than 10cm long.
- Use a sharp knife to cut just below a leaf joint, then remove the leaves from the bottom half of the cutting.
- If your cutting has large leaves, then you should reduce the leaf area by half to minimise water loss. However, with smaller leaves there’s no need.
- Rooting compound does help to speed up the process, but it isn’t essential. If you use it, dip the base of the cutting in the powder, and tap off any excess.
- Insert cuttings into small plant pots of moist compost, keeping lower leaves just above compost level and use a dibber or pencil to make a hole for the cuttings.
- Cover the cuttings with a plastic bag and tie it securely.
- Place your cuttings in a warm position, out of direct sun, to root. Don’t forget to take the poly bag off every day, shaking out any moisture inside to stop it getting too steamy which might lead to rot.
- It will take about 4 to 6 weeks for your cuttings to root. The top often starts to grow before the roots have formed, so don’t get carried away until you’re sure they have rooted!
🔶 Wildlife Watch
It’s so tempting to cut back all the plants that have finished flowering, but these seeds are brilliant for birds. As the days shorten, a plant’s natural reaction is to try to set seed and it is a good idea to let some of them do just that. Things like Lavender, Verbena, and Globe thistles will all provide food for birds and small mammals like mice.
There’s always more to do in the garden, but that’s our round up of tips for August. Hopefully you’ve got some ideas. Do let us know what you’re up to in the comments, and don’t forget to subscribe to the STIHL GB YouTube channel for more ideas in September.
🔶 STIHL Website: stihl.co.uk
🔶 Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/stihlgb
🔶 Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/stihl_gb
🔶 Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/stihlgb
#STIHL #STIHLGB #AugustGardenGuide #GardenGuide #STIHLGardenGuide #JaneMoore #WateringPlantPots #WateringTips #TakingCuttings #WildlifeWatch
We’re back with the latest instalment of the STIHL garden guide! This month, Jane Moore showcases jobs to do in your garden in August in the STIHL August Garden Guide video.
Firstly, try to take advantage of rainy weather by putting houseplants outside for some fresh air, or if it’s raining, a good wash and a drink, too.
🔶 Watering Plant Pots
Watering plant pots is one of the most important jobs through the summer, especially when you’re growing plants in garden containers. It doesn’t matter what they are; vegetables, fruit, or flowers, they all rely on you to keep them watered through the summer.
The key thing with watering plant pots is to make sure the plants get a good drink, so water thoroughly. It’s good practice to water a plant once, then go back to it later to give it another soak.
🔶 Five Top Watering Tips
1. Water early in the morning, or late in the evening so the sun doesn’t just burn all that moisture away. Watering in the evening means that the plants have all night to take up that valuable water. If you have a lot of plant pots or a newly planted garden, it might make sense to invest in an automatic system. They’re brilliant if you’re going on holiday, and drip or trickle systems are often exempt from hosepipe bans.
2. Collect water where you can in water butts or use grey water from washing up. Don’t worry about it having detergent in as it will help the compost to absorb the water.
3. Use mulch on your garden borders and veg plots to help retain moisture. This is a layer of material, at least 5cm (2in) thick, applied to the soil whilst its wet. Mulches improve plant growth by adding nutrients or increasing organic matter content, as well as reducing water loss from the soil. But even decorative mulches, like chipped bark and gravel, serve a purpose by suppressing weeds and protecting the soil from drying out.
4. It also makes sense to plant wisely, using drought tolerant plants. This is especially important as our summers are getting hotter. A lot of great plants cope with dry conditions – lots of grasses, herbs like Lavender and Catmint, and Salvias are so easy to grow and flower all summer long.
5. It’s also a good idea to move plant pots into the shade to try to protect them. It’s such an easy thing to do but it makes a huge difference to the plants.
🔶 Cuttings
High summer is a brilliant time to take cuttings of lots of favourite plants. It’s great to have plants for free, and replacements for plants that die. If you’re new to taking cuttings, don’t worry, it’s so easy that you can take lots. Follow the steps below:
- Choose healthy, strong, non-flowering shoots. These should root quickly and soon grow into new plants.
- Remove a few likely looking shoots, but make sure they’re longer than the finished cutting. Cut them just above a leaf on the parent plant.
- Aim to take a cutting not more than 10cm long.
- Use a sharp knife to cut just below a leaf joint, then remove the leaves from the bottom half of the cutting.
- If your cutting has large leaves, then you should reduce the leaf area by half to minimise water loss. However, with smaller leaves there’s no need.
- Rooting compound does help to speed up the process, but it isn’t essential. If you use it, dip the base of the cutting in the powder, and tap off any excess.
- Insert cuttings into small plant pots of moist compost, keeping lower leaves just above compost level and use a dibber or pencil to make a hole for the cuttings.
- Cover the cuttings with a plastic bag and tie it securely.
- Place your cuttings in a warm position, out of direct sun, to root. Don’t forget to take the poly bag off every day, shaking out any moisture inside to stop it getting too steamy which might lead to rot.
- It will take about 4 to 6 weeks for your cuttings to root. The top often starts to grow before the roots have formed, so don’t get carried away until you’re sure they have rooted!
🔶 Wildlife Watch
It’s so tempting to cut back all the plants that have finished flowering, but these seeds are brilliant for birds. As the days shorten, a plant’s natural reaction is to try to set seed and it is a good idea to let some of them do just that. Things like Lavender, Verbena, and Globe thistles will all provide food for birds and small mammals like mice.
There’s always more to do in the garden, but that’s our round up of tips for August. Hopefully you’ve got some ideas. Do let us know what you’re up to in the comments, and don’t forget to subscribe to the STIHL GB YouTube channel for more ideas in September.
🔶 STIHL Website: stihl.co.uk
🔶 Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/stihlgb
🔶 Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/stihl_gb
🔶 Follow us on Instagram: instagram.com/stihlgb
#STIHL #STIHLGB #AugustGardenGuide #GardenGuide #STIHLGardenGuide #JaneMoore #WateringPlantPots #WateringTips #TakingCuttings #WildlifeWatch
