August 18 2007 Timely Tips

GARDENING CALENDAR

TEXAS COOPERATIVE EXTENSION

BEXAR COUNTY BY DAVID RODRIGUEZ

August 18, 2007

  • Trim back overgrown or leggy spring-planted annuals such as petunias and impatiens to encourage new growth and flower production. Add two pounds of a slow release 19-5-9 fertilizer per 100 square feet after pruning
  • If your established trees are dropping leaves, it’s OK. They’re just adjusting to the overabundance of rainfall and current extreme heat.
  • Locally. Cotton root rot is stimulated by hot temperatures and poor soil drainage. Cottonwoods, roses, Chinese pistache, sycamore and okra are very susceptible. It kills plants so fast that their leaves are still on the plant. There is no effective treatment although native and well adapted plants selections would be recommended.
  • After harvest, a deep watering on the peach and plum trees once per month will help develop a good crop next spring.
  • In August, all ornamental turf grasses and most landscapes need supplemental watering in lieu of rainfall. Most require with this heat a minimal of one inch of supplemental irrigation every seven to ten days and possibly stretched out to every fourteen days with morning waterings preferred.

David Rodriguez is County Extension Agent-Horticulture with Texas Cooperative Extension in Bexar County. For more information, call the Master Gardener “Hotline” (210) 467-6575 or visit our County Extension website at http://bexar-tx.tamu.edu.

Comments are closed.