Water, water everywhere

Watering is a major concern in gardens this month due to the spotty rainfall.

While a few gardeners measured 5 inches of rain in the past month, most of us got next to nothing. The low rainfall and dry soil conditions will affect many of the lawn and garden chores you have planned for August.

The season for sowing grass seed runs from Aug. 15 to Oct. 15, and there is not much you can do without moisture in the ground. Clay soil baked in the summer sun is difficult to prepare for planting grass seed. Hand tools and power equipment will have limited results unless there is water to soften the soil.

The bluegrass, fescue and ryegrass growing in our lawns originated in cooler, wetter parts of the world, such as Eurasia. As they struggle to survive a dry summer in southern Virginia, these grasses turn yellow and brown and become dormant. Most dormant lawns will turn green again, assuming rainfall comes in the near future.

The best approach to caring for a dormant lawn is to do nothing. Do not mow it. Do not fertilize it. Do not even walk on it.

August is the time to fertilize roses to prepare them for the autumn flowering season. Hybrid teas, floribundas and others will benefit from nitrogen fertilizer as the season’s last flower buds are developing. It can be provided by pouring on several doses of soluble fertilizer mixed with water and by sprinkling a handful of granular fertilizer on the ground at the base of the plant. Unless there is rain, users of granular fertilizer will need to water heavily to dissolve the fertilizer and move it into the root zone.

Dry weather complicates the job of growing vegetables. They require moisture for seed germination, so keep your garden hose handy if you are planting beets, carrots and greens such as collard, mustard, kale and turnip. Vegetable seeds may need watering every other day, if the weather remains hot.

Cabbage and broccoli plants set out in your garden this month will need regular watering. In hot weather, they could require watering every day for the first week. After that, one good watering once or twice a week is enough. Definitely put straw or some other kind of mulch on the ground around your vegetables to reduce the need for watering.

A steady supply of water is essential to keep your tomatoes in production. Point the end of your garden hose at the ground under your tomatoes and soak it thoroughly once a week. For maximum tomato growth, put mulch on the ground and continue fertilizing. Follow the fertilizer guidelines given above for roses, because what tomatoes need most at this time of year is nitrogen.

The houseplants you put outdoors on a porch or under a shade tree could be getting too dry this summer. Monitor their soil moisture by sticking your finger in their pots and soak them as needed. When you water potted plants of any kind, pour on plenty of water. Excess water running out of the pot’s drainage holes will carry away salts which could otherwise build up to toxic levels.