Lawn Care

o Watch for chinch bugs in St. Augustinegrass and be prepared to apply Baygon or various types of pyrethroids such as Tempo, Talstar, etc for best control

o Fertilize the warm seasoned grasses with 1/2 to 1 pound of actual nitrogen except Centipedegrass. Late appli-cations of nitrogen may cause winter kill or cold injury to Centipedegrass.

o Watch for mole cricket activity - small tunnels at the soil surface. Top Choice (fipronil) is usually applied for mole cricket control in late May. You may also use Talstar and other labeled pyrethroids as needed according to label directions.

o Large Patch disease control applications should be applied when soil temperatures decrease to around 70 degrees which will usually be sometime in mid to late September. Monitor now and be ready to apply before the disease becomes too damaging.


Fertilization:

Annuals and Biennials that have recently been cut back to force new flowers will benefit from fertilizing with a liquid 20/20/20 fertilizer now.

Apply 1/2 to 1 pound of actual nitrogen per 1000 sq.ft. for lawns
Bermudagrass - 1 pound
Zoysiagrass - 1/2 pound
St. Augustinegrass - 1/2 pound


Landscape Plants:

o Powdery mildew on Crapemyrtles: Pay close attention to your crapemyrtle foliage. Banner or Bayleton may be used to control Powdery Mildew if you notice a white powdery substance on your Crapemyrtles.
o Help your crape myrtles lose weight this summer. As the flowers fade, tip prune them. This will encourage new, dense growth and more flowers for late summer.

o Annual Flower Beds: a closed canopy will shade out many weeds. Periodic cultivations will suppress many weeds. Mulches will suppress many annual weeds.

o Unpruned plants are good candidates to be blown over in a thunderstorm. Also a good summer trim will encourage new growth and possibly more flower buds for late summer or fall. Several plants to consider for midsummer clean up are: Tansy, Hollyhocks, Mexican Bush Sage, Santolina, Comfry, Catnip, Queen Anne's Lace, Fennel, and Thyme. Remember to keep a 3 4 inch layer of an organic mulch throughout the perennial border. Also keep any insect pests under control and fertilize if necessary.

o If you are growing summer color plants in containers, it will help to keep a water saucer under the pot. Pots will not dry out as quickly. It will also help to add peat moss and soil to the pine bark media to hold moisture. Be sure to mix the amendments together thoroughly before planting. Watering frequency will be greatly reduced.


Pruning: For additional flowering, deadheading some of your favorite flowers now may force them to bloom again in the fall.

Light pruning may be performed for most landscape plants except those that you expect to have blooms from next spring such as azaleas. Storm damaged tissue may make it necessary to make heavier pruning cuts than normal to repair broken, leaning or dangerous limbs.

Cut back Red Tip Photinia now to have beautiful red foliage throughout the winter months.


Pest Control

August is often the hottest and most humid month for growing plants. Extra care must be provided for young establishing plants due to the abundant and constant pressure of insect, disease and weed competition.

Air quality may be poor and plants may show signs of ozone injury. Treat fungal diseases with fungicides as needed and continue to monitor plant growth to prevent devastating losses.

Insect populations build up to threshold levels and wise use of pesticides may be necessary to control Aphids, Spider Mites, Scales, and Whiteflies found in the landscape. Sycamores will start an early fall color change from damage they suffer from lacebug attack. Spray controls for this pest is not practical and the leaves will be falling next month anyway.

For most trees, spray control of pests must be judged with how many more weeks of beauty you expect out of the tree versus the eventual loss of leaves in the fall. Practice sanitation to remove infected plant material so the problem will be not as bad next year. Azalea caterpillars and fall webworms make their appearance now - treat with orthene, sevin or malathion.

Get Ready! Fall is the best time to plant trees and shrubs in the landscape. Look around now and analyze your site to see if you can enhance your landscape with a few more plants or you may want to consider renovating your landscape this fall. Now is the time to put your ideas on paper and start lining up the plants you will need later. Have you thought about a fall garden?

Hints! Regular weeding and watering of lawns, flowers, and vegetable gardens will keep them producing all summer. Mulch all beds to maintain even moisture and keep weeds down. Leaf spot on tomatoes can be treated with an insecticidal spray: follow label directions. Good clean-up of all infected leaves, branches, and plant stubble from gardens can prevent the spread of diseases in your gardens.


Planting
Plant pansy seed this month in flats for planting in the landscape in September.
Spider lily (lycoris), colchicum (autumn crocus) and sternbergia bulbs should be planted in August.
Sow seed of the following perennials: hollyhock, delphinium and stokesia to produce healthy plants for next spring.
Continue repotting house plants.
Plant the following fall vegetable plants this month: beets, Chinese cabbage, cucumber, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, mustard, radish, rutabaga, spinach, squash and turnip.