Wayne Hobbs
| For the Jacksonville Florida Times-Union USA TODAY NETWORK
Gardening tips for healthy vegetables
Make sure you follow these 3 tips for a healthy vegetable garden.
ProblemSolved, USA TODAY
August gardening in Florida requires attention to watering, light pruning, and lawn care.Prepare for fall by planting heat-tolerant vegetables and starting seeds indoors.Take preventative measures for tropical storms, such as cleaning gutters and pruning.Various vegetables, annuals, herbs, and bulbs can be planted in August.
August is my least favorite time in Florida. After nine years, I dread the nights that don’t get below 80 degrees, the humidity that takes your breath away, and the continual monitoring of severe and tropical storms. This is the month that I long for an actual autumn and never look forward to getting outside to garden. However, for those that brave the heat there is plenty to do in the garden this month.
Keeping your landscape going
While you are trying to survive this August, so is your garden. To keep your garden going, and growing, light landscape maintenance such as dead-heading spent blooms on annuals and perennials can encourage a fresh flush of flowers. However, hold off on heavy hedging of plants as this type of pruning can cause heavy flushes of new growth which adds stress to the shrubs.
You will also want to check to make sure everything is getting the water it needs, while not irrigating too much. Make sure your system provides good coverage and that your rain sensor is operational. One benefit to a normal August is frequent rains so if it is raining, make sure your irrigation is not running. You should also not be irrigating any more than two days a week at a maximum per St. Johns Water Management District guidelines.
Do not add any extra stress to your lawn. Be sure your mower blades are sharp and you are cutting at the correct height. Be sure to check the label of any pesticide or herbicide you are thinking about applying in the landscape. Some products specifically state to not apply them above a certain temperature as they can damage the plants you don’t want to harm.
Looking ahead to Autumn
While it may seem far away, start thinking about what you can do to get ready for the fall season. Plant heat-tolerant vegetables now for fall harvest and you can even start some seeds indoors like tomatoes, cabbage, kale, broccoli, and more to get a jump on your cool-season garden. This is also a good time to get your soil tested and look at amending garden areas with compost as needed.
Don’t be caught unaware: Tropical storms
Other than some rainstorms in July, it has been a quiet ::Knocks on Wood:: start to the Atlantic Tropical season. However, do not get too complacent and allow your home and landscape to be unprepared for the upcoming peak of the season in August and September. While it is still calm, be sure to clean your gutters, take care of any preventative pruning, and remove as many potential hazards as you can.
Preparing now beats having to rush in the face of an upcoming storm or, even worse, deal with damage to your home or neighborhood after a tropical event. For more information, see https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/care/weather/hurricane-landscaping/ .
If you have any gardening questions, be sure to reach out to your local UF/IFAS Extension office. The UF/IFAS Extension Office in Clay County is available at IF-SVC-Clay@ufl.edu or by phone at (904) 284-6355.
Things to plant in August
Vegetables: Okra, Southern Peas (black-eyed, Crowder, etc.), Sweet Potatoes. Boniato, Gingers, Roselle, Tropical Spinach, Amaranth, Calabaza, Long Squash, Luffa, Papaya, Pigeon Pea, Seminole Pumpkin, and Chayote.
Annuals: Celosia, Coleus, Crossandra, Exacum, Impatiens, Nicotiana, Ornamental Pepper, Portulaca, Salvia, Torenia, Periwinkle, and Zinnia.
Herbs: Basil, Mexican Tarragon, and Rosemary.
Bulbs, tubers or rhizomes: Aztec lily, Gladiolus, Kaffir lily, African lily, Spider lily, Scarborough lily, and Walking Iris.
Wayne Hobbs is an extension agent in environmental horticulture for Clay County.