August 4 2007 Timely Tips

GARDENING CALENDAR

TEXAS COOPERATIVE EXTENSION

BEXAR COUNTY BY DAVID RODRIGUEZ

August 4, 2007

  • In August, all grasses require some water to stay green. Yes, even after all this year’s rain. Check out the San Antonio Water System’s web site to find out how much water is needed for your grass. If you have Bermuda grass, Zoysia, or Buffalo grass, you don’t need to water as much as or as frequent as St. Augustine grass.
  • August, the hottest and driest month, is deep summer in San Antonio. Well adapted plants will make it through the month without supplemental watering; others will need conscientious watering to stay prosperous. August is the month when good mulching makes a difference. Maintain the mulch layer at one-to-two inches of an organic cedar or hardwood selection to help avoid soil moisture loss.
  • If you have Bermuda grass in the flower beds, use a herbicide to get rid of the grass. If you follow directions, it will kill the grass without harming the plants. Problems with nutgrass? Consider, applying pesticide on the nutgrass. Always follow label instructions.
  • Change your sugar water for the hummingbirds every week. Pour the old liquid in a shallow dish for the butterflies. Keep birdbaths full and cleaned.
  • Maintain bloom on the crape myrtles and Texas Lilac Vitex by removing (deadheading) the spent blooms. You’ll get two-to-three times the number of blooms the next time around.

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

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