End of Summer Garden Maintenance

  

Presently we have a few cooler days and I took advantage of the weather and started the end of summer garden maintenance.  So, I made a list of the garden tasks that need to be completed now so we can enjoy a maintenance free garden during the fall season.

 

Today I removed all of the seedheads from the annual flowers and put the seeds in an envelope.  I will use these seeds for next growing season. 

Then I removed all annual flowers along with wild grasses and weeds from the garden bed.  I also harvested any remaining vegetables and herbs for drying.

 

The end of summer is a good time to trim and prune perennial shrubs, trees and to transplant irises that are overcrowded.

Apply a layer of organic mulch or layer of leaves to your garden beds to enrich the soil during the fall and winter months.  Mulch is also a good way to protect perennial flower  roots from shifting soil due to freezing soils or soil movement.

Maintain your end of summer garden by watering trees, shrubs and fall flowers at least once a week.  

 

Take time to clean your bird feeders, bird baths garden tools, and your lawn mower.  It’s a good idea to take your lawn mower in for service so that its ready for the following season.  

When to Water Tomatoes Grown in Containers

 As a rule, the best time to water your outdoor plants is early in the morning.  The weather in the morning is cooler and this temperature will allow the water to be absorbed into the soil and hydrate the plants.

 It’s not a good idea to water plants in the afternoon or early evening because it its hot outside the water will evaporate instead of being absorbed by the plant’s roots.  However, tomatoes grown in containers will need to be watered more than plants grown in the ground.  It’s smart to check your tomato containers a few times daily to make sure that the soil is not dry. If plants need to be watered late in the day they water them, but at the soil line and not on the leaves.

 

I grow tomatoes in containers and find that the soil does dry out very quickly during the hot summer months.  The container plants need regular watering.  You do not want the soil to dry out, so I recommend watering directly to the soil surface until the water drains from the holes at bottom of the pot.   Then check your tomato plants again before the heat of the day. Water your tomato containers deeply. 

Tomatoes like it hot but extreme heatwaves might be too harsh for a tomato grown in a container.  That is why my tomatoes get 6 hours of morning sun, and shade in the afternoon when the heat is excessive. Then from five in the afternoon to dusk the plants will get three more hours of late in the day sun.  

Keep your tomatoes in container hydrated.  Know that if you water your tomato plants in the morning, then skip the late in the day or early evening watering.  The soil will dry out you will run the risk of your tomatoes cracking from receiving too much water after a dry spell. 

Other Information

If you have not added mulch to your tomato containers then I recommend that you do as it will aid in keeping roots cooler and the mulch will hold moisture.