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Greetings
August Gardening Tips!
We all know that the climate of Southern California is great for creating a garden that bursts with color and blooms virtually all year-round, but remember that the average temperatures are at their highest in August making it a challenging month to keep gardens looking their best. August is also the month to start thinking about the winter vegetable garden. Start seeds of broccoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, leeks, parsley and peas.
Ideas for August.
Clean Up Annuals: Your annuals may start to look a little raggedy in August. Remove dead blooms and stems to encourage new growth.
Cut Back Poor Growing Perennials: If perennials are struggling in the summer heat, cut them back to only a few inches tall. They will start to regrow in fall or early spring.
Re-evaluate your landscaping: Even with water conservation efforts, water costs are still rising,
August is a good time to examine your landscaping and decide which trees and plants are doing well without much water.
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FERTILIZE
Add plants that love hot weather: If you want to spruce up your flower garden, add splashes of color with perennials that can take the heat. These include: California fuchsia, daylily, black-eyed susan, rose of sharon, russian sage, coneflowers, caryopertis, yarrow, pincushion flower, hostas, yarrow, lantana, and more.
Keep the soil uniformly moist, allowing it to dry out between watering. Mulch your plants to keep roots moist in summer and insulated in winter, but take care to keep mulch away from the crown of the plant. In the spring, prune dead wood out of the plants.
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Smart watering
Deep Water trees and shrubs: Most trees and shrubs need a weekly deep watering during August. It is better to deep water (15 minutes on a slow drip) than water more often but for less time. Deep watering forces roots to grow down into the cooler and moister portion of the soil. Water in the early morning hours.
Even California natives and water-sipping mediterranean trees and shrubs benefit from a deep soaking in August. On the hottest days, potted plants may need watering twice a day -- something to keep in mind as you make future selections.
Visit our website and take advantage of our Flowers Selection Tool.
Click Here
Save Our Water Outdoor
Water your lawn 1 to 2 days a week instead of 5 days a week. Saves up to 840 gallons per week. As a general rule, lawns only need watering every 5 to 7 days in the summer and every 10 to 14 days in the winter.
- Check your sprinkler system for leaks, overspray and broken sprinkler heads and repair promptly.
- Use a broom instead of a hose to clean driveways and sidewalks.
- Avoid over fertilizing your lawn. The application of fertilizers increases the need for water. Apply fertilizers which contain slow-release, water-insoluble forms of nitrogen.
- Install a smart sprinkler controller that adjusts watering based on weather, soil type, amount of shade and plant type. Wireless rain sensors are a convenient way to save up to 30 percent on outdoor watering by automatically turning off your system when it rains.
- Outfit your hose with a shut-off nozzle which can be adjusted down to fine spray so that water flows only as needed. When finished, "Turn it Off" at the faucet instead of at the nozzle to avoid leaks.
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- Water your plants in the early morning or evening to reduce evaporation and ineffective
- watering due to wind
- Mulch! Save hundreds of gallons of water a year by using organic mulch
- Around plants to reduce evaporation.
- Use low-angle sprinklers that produce droplets of water. Sprinklers that spray water high into the air or produce a mist lose water through evaporation.
- If you have a swimming pool, consider a new water-saving pool filter. A single back flushing with a traditional filter uses from l80 to 250 gallons or more of water.
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Save our Water Indoor
When washing dishes by hand, fill one sink or basin with soapy water. Quickly rinse under a slow-moving stream from the faucet.
- Wash only full loads of laundry and dishes this saves up to 50 gallons per week.
- Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. If your faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per second, you can expect to waste 2,700 gallons per year.
- Install a low-flow faucet aerator, which can cut water use in half. Water saved: 1 to 2 gallons per minute.
- Wash only full loads in the dishwasher. An efficient dishwasher usually uses much less water than washing dishes by hand.
- Use the minimum amount of water needed for a bath by closing the drain first and filling the tub only 1/3 full.
- Spend only 5 minutes in the shower. Saves up to 8 gallons each time or replace your showerhead with an ultra-low-flow version. Some units are available that allow you to cut off the flow without adjusting the water temperature knobs.
- Turn off the water while you brush your teeth. Saves up to 2.5 gallons per minute
- Talk to your family and friends about saving water.
Follow the link to learn on Water Conservation
http://www.lcra.org/water/Pages/default.aspx
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Regards,
Oakridge Landscape, Inc.
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