August marks the transitional period from winter to spring here in Aotearoa, New Zealand, making it a crucial month for gardening and landscaping. This comprehensive guide will help you prepare your garden for the upcoming season with detailed tips for your fruit and vegetable garden, ornamental garden, general garden maintenance, and expert landscaping tips.
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Key Garden & Landscaping Products for August: Premium Compost, Premium Garden Mix, Bark & Mulch, Dave’s Growth Booster Sheep Pellets, Lawn & Garden Fertilisers, Nutra Soil, Ultra Soil, Timber Sleepers, Ponga Logs, Weedmat, Decorative Pebbles & Stones, Pea Metal/Gravel.
The Fruit and Vegetable Garden
A monarch butterfly hangs upside down from alyssum flowers.
Pollinator-Friendly Planting
To ensure a bountiful harvest, it's essential to attract pollinators to your garden. Plant alyssum at the base of fruit trees to lure bees.
Additionally, specific seed blends designed to aid pollination can enhance fruit production.
Pest Control and Soil Maintenance
Protect your crops by using snail bait or organic snail and slug control around maturing cabbages, cauliflowers, and new seedlings of lettuces and herbs.
Raised beds tend to sink over time, so refresh them by adding Premium Garden Mix.
If the soil hasn't been conditioned recently, add some Premium Compost and Dave’s Growth Booster Sheep Pellets to improve soil health.
Winter Vegetables
Its time to harvest winter vegetables.
Winter is the time to harvest vegetables like carrots, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, beetroot, and silver beet.
Start planting new seedlings of fennel to add a gourmet touch to your baked vegetables. Globe artichokes can also be planted now, but be vigilant about snails hiding in their large leaves.
August is beetroot harvest time in New Zealand.
Hardier herbs such as thyme, oregano, coriander, sage, and parsley can be planted, alongside cos and head lettuce varieties to begin your salad patch.
In frost-free areas, sprouted potatoes can be planted by digging a trench, placing them 40cm apart, and covering lightly with soil as they grow.
Seed Sowing and Herb Garden Maintenance
August is perfect for sowing tomato seeds indoors.
Sow tomato, capsicum, and zucchini seeds indoors or under cover. Using a heat pad can help with germination during winter.
Stake up broad beans to protect them from the strong spring winds.
Plant bee-attracting flowers like calendulas, poppies, bergamots, and lavenders, which will bloom at the same time as your edibles, ensuring that bees are always around.
Maintain your herb garden by giving thyme, bay, parsley, and rosemary a good trim.
Mint can quickly overrun your garden, so lift and trim the roots before replanting.
The Ornamental Garden
Pruning and Planting
Prune hydrangeas and hibiscus by removing dead or old branches at the base. Thin out the centre of the bush to reduce congestion and cut back branches to a double set of leaves.
For blue hydrangea flowers, apply 'blueing tonic' (Aluminium Sulphate); for pink flowers, apply lime. White flowers will remain unchanged regardless of soil type.
Hedges
Plant hedges in soil enriched with compost. To encourage thick growth, cut the bushes back by a quarter at planting and for best results plant in our Nutra Soil or Ultra Soil to ensure abundant growth.
Identify dormant perennial plants beginning to shoot through the ground and place marker sticks beside them to avoid accidental removal.
Pittosporum Tenuifolium (Kohuhu) is a great option for hedging.
Repetition Planting
Create a sense of continuity in your garden by planting groups of the same plant.
Reliable shrubs or tidy strap-leaf plants for this look include loropetalums, coprosmas, dietes, and lomandras.
Lavenders, with their vibrant blooms, can be pruned now to increase bushiness and ensure a stunning summer display.
Project for August: Soil Conditioning
Invest in your garden's future by conditioning the soil, try Aquaticus Organic Soil & Plant Conditioner.
Early spring is an excellent time to add compost, sheep pellets, or Aquaticus Organic Garden Booster Liquid Fertiliser. This will ensure your garden thrives when the soil warms up and dries out, ready for spring planting.
General Garden Maintenance
Winter Pruning
If you haven't done so yet, August is a great time of year to trim back your roses.
Pruning fruit trees encourages the growth of fruiting wood.
Trim summer flowering shrubs, roses, and any dormant plants like hydrangeas, removing dead or diseased wood to promote healthy spring growth.
Lawn Care
Lawns can become compacted over winter, especially in high-traffic areas.
Aerate the lawn with a garden fork or a lawn aerator to help water and nutrients penetrate the soil, improving root growth.
Apply Lawnganics Roots lawn fertiliser to promote strong root development - check out our entire range of Lawn & Garden Fertilisers here.
If moss is a problem, apply a moss killer and rake out the dead moss.
Flower Bulbs
Summer flowering dahlia tubers and lily bulbs are available to order now.
Dahlias are the 'cool' flower to plant currently, so get in quick if there's a desired colour theme.
Lilies might just be one of the easiest and most economic bulbs - plant them, leave them and they'll repeat flower every year!
Only lilies should go in the ground now, store the dahlia tubers until October to plant when the season warms up.
Weed Control
Stay ahead of winter weeds before they set seed. Hand weed or use an organic weed killer.
Applying a thick layer of mulch will help suppress weeds and retain soil moisture. Some situations may require weedmat.
Composting
Feed your soil with nutrient-rich Premium Compost.
Start a compost heap or bin to recycle garden waste and kitchen scraps.
A balanced mix of green (nitrogen-rich) and brown (carbon-rich) materials will break down into nutrient-rich compost to improve your soil.
For those that don’t have time to prepare your own, try our Premium Compost.
Watering
Although it's winter, some plants still need watering, especially if it's been dry in your region.
Newly planted trees, shrubs, and perennials need to be kept moist to help establish their roots.
Plan Your Spring Garden
Now is the time to plan for the coming spring.
Browse seed catalogues online, sketch out new garden beds, and make a list of plants you'd like to grow.
Order seeds early to ensure you get the varieties you want.
Tree Planting
Use Nutra Soil or Ultra Soil to fill in the hole around your tree to ensure optimal growth.
August is ideal for tree planting. Dig a hole at least as deep as the tree’s root ball and twice as wide. For hard, compacted soil, add a handful of gypsum to the hole.
Mix the existing soil with Garden Mix, Nutra Soil or Ultra Soil and carefully place it around the rootball, then heel it in firmly.
Trees and shrubs should be staked for the first few years to ensure stability and strong growth.
Flowering Plants
Place pots of sprouted spring flowering bulbs in sunny areas to make the most of their upcoming displays.
Clear areas in the garden where bulbs and deciduous plants are beginning to emerge through the soil to expose them to light and sun, encouraging growth.
Hedge Planting
Use a string line to ensure your hedge is as straight as an arrow!
Late August is perfect for planting hedges and perennial borders for the summer garden.
Plant in our Nutra Soil or Ultra Soil (Tree Pit Mix) for best results, and add some mulch after planting to retain moisture and suppress weeds.
Flowering Camellias
Brighten the last days of winter with flowering camellias, but be sure to clean up fallen petals to avoid spreading camellia petal blight.
Lawn Fertilising
Apply Prolawn All Purpose Lawn Fertiliser to rejuvenate yellowing or sad-looking lawns. Avoid mowing very wet lawns until they have dried out a little.
Landscaping Tips for August
Plan Your Landscape Design
August is an excellent time to plan your landscape design for the spring and summer months. Check out this fantastic article featuring Kerry Speirs from DIY Designs on how to make the best plan.
Consider the layout, plant selection, and overall aesthetic you want to achieve. Sketch out your ideas and make a list of plants, landscape materials, and tools you will need.
Tree and Shrub Selection
Visit garden centres and nurseries to select trees and shrubs for your landscape. Early selection ensures you get the best varieties before they sell out.
Choose plants that are suited to your climate and soil type for optimal growth.
Edging and Borders
Ponga Logs are a great choice for garden edges.
Define the edges of your garden beds with clean lines.
Use materials such as bricks, stones, timber sleepers, ponga logs or garden edging made from 100% recycled plastic to create a neat and tidy appearance.
Well-defined borders enhance the overall look of your landscape and make maintenance easier.
Mulching
Apply a layer of mulch to your garden beds to retain moisture, suppress weeds, and improve soil health.
Mulches like bark chips, pea straw, or composted leaves are beneficial for the soil as they break down over time.
If it’s something more striking you’re after, check out our Black Decorative Mulch.
Pathways and Walkways
Large 900mm x 450mm Feinwerk Pavers combined with white limestone chip.
Create pathways and walkways to navigate through your garden easily. Use materials like pebbles, pea metal/gravel, stepping stones or pavers to add functionality and aesthetic appeal.
Well-placed pathways can help to highlight different areas of your garden and create a sense of flow.
Water Features & Bird Feeders
A pair of Tui enjoying a drink of honey-water.
Consider adding a water feature such as a fountain, pond, birdbath or feeder. Water features can add a sense of tranquillity and attract wildlife to your garden.
Lighting
Install garden lighting to enhance the beauty of your landscape during the evening. Use solar-powered lights along pathways, spotlights to highlight key features, and string lights to create a cosy ambiance.
Proper lighting can extend the use of your garden into the evenings.
Outdoor Furniture
Plan for outdoor furniture that compliments your garden design. Choose durable, weather-resistant materials that can withstand the elements.
Comfortable seating and dining areas can make your garden a perfect place to relax and entertain.
Vertical Gardening
Maximise your space with vertical gardening techniques. Use trellises, wall planters, and hanging baskets to grow plants vertically. This is especially useful for small gardens or to create privacy screens.
Sustainable Practices
Incorporate sustainable gardening practices into your landscape design. Use native plants that require less water and maintenance. Collect rainwater for irrigation and create a composting system to recycle garden waste.
By following this comprehensive guide, your garden will be well-prepared for the vibrant growth of spring. Enjoy the process and the rewards that come with a well-tended garden and thoughtfully designed landscape. Happy gardening and landscaping!
