Summer

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Summer

Lawn/Garden - June
Lawn/Garden - July
Lawn/Garden - August

Home Maintenance Tips

Check all recreational equipment including pools, trampolines, etc.
Check all window and door locks for proper operation.
Check exterior siding.
Check the water hoses on the clothes washer, refrigerator icemaker and dishwasher for cracks and bubbles.
Check water systems for manual and automatic operations.
Check your plumbing, water heater and fixtures for water leaks.
Check your wood deck or concrete patio for possible deterioration.
Clean the clothes dryer exhaust duct, damper and space under the dryer.
Clean the refrigerator inside and out and confirm it is working properly.
Clean up grill area and position with a three foot “safe zone” on each side.
Confirm your refrigerator thermometer is working properly.
Follow the manufacturer’s maintenance schedules for your lawn, farm, vehicle and equipment maintenance.
Have your roof inspected for potential leaks once every few years.
Inspect and clean dust from the covers of your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.
Make sure there are working nightlights at the top and bottom of all stairs.
Properly administer chemicals to control pests on lawn.
Sharpen or replace cutting blades on lawnmowers and tractors.
Socialize your dog to help reduce potential dog bites.

Lawn/Garden Maintenance Tips - June
Lawns

Check lawns for insects and disease.
Fertilize all warm season turf grass. Do not fertilize cool season lawns until September.
Maintain the mowing height for fescue lawns at 3 inches. Try to mow frequently enough to remove no more than 1/3 of the blade at a time.
Regular rainy weather will produce good conditions for brown patch, a fungus disease. If brown patches begin to occur in the lawn do not irrigate and do not mow the lawn when wet.
Treat turf grass for mole crickets late in the summer and early July.

Ornamentals

Early spring rains have encouraged many of us to do a lot of planting. Remember to check new plantings through the summer. Trees and shrubs will need a good soaking every week through the first growing season. Herbaceous perennials will need regular watering at least for the first couple of months.
Fertilize house and patio plants every two weeks.
Fertilize roses and treat for black spot disease where needed.
If you have moved house plants outside for the summer, this is a good time to repot if you have not done so.
Irises and daylilies can be divided even while in bloom. This is useful if you need to keep flower colors separated. Remove any remaining flowers, cut leaves half way back and replant the divisions as soon as possible.
Pinch the ends off flowers to promote branching.
Prune azaleas and camellias early in the month.
Prune spring blooming shrubs soon after blooms fade.
Treat gardenias and ligustrums for white flies.
You can still plant seeds for fast maturing annuals such as cosmos, zinnias, marigolds, and small sunflowers.

Fruits

If fruit crops escape freeze injury in the spring, many will need to be thinned to prevent tree damage from too much fruit and to increase fruit size. Apples, pears and peaches should be thinned before the fruit is larger than a nickel. Remove excess fruit until fruits are 4 to 6 inches apart.
This is not a bad time to remove excess sucker and watersprout growth from apple trees. Removing the excessively vigorous growth now will allow more of the plant’s energy to go into fruit and desirable growth, and will result in less re-sprouting than winter pruning.
Wet spring and early summer weather is especially bad for developing brown rot on peaches and plums, and black rot on grapes. Maintain regular fungicide sprays as a preventative as these diseases can not be controlled once they have infected the fruit.

Vegetables

Be careful when harvesting. Use 2 hands to pull beans, cucumbers, squash, etc. to avoid breaking the plant.
Fertilize tomatoes every four to six weeks.
Once cucumbers, squash and green beans begin to fruit, check them daily. The fruits mature quickly and are best harvested while young and tender.
Plant a late tomato crop at mid month.
Through the month of June you can still plant tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, green beans, winter squash, and pumpkins.
Vegetable crops generally need another dose of fertilizer about 5 to 6 weeks after planting, or when fruit starts to form.

Other

Remember to monitor the soil moisture as plants will dry out faster outside.

Lawn/Garden Maintenance Tips - July
Lawns

Do not fertilize cool season grasses until September.
Mow lawns at proper height. If drought occurs, raise the mowing height.
Sprinkle lawns with at least one inch of water per week.
Treat lawns for mole crickets in early July.
Brown patch fungal disease becomes evident with too much rain. The best approach is to avoid mowing when the grass is wet and to hope for drier weather.

Ornamentals

Annual flowers that tend to get very tall can be cut back at least half way to get them back in bounds. Some to cut back are cleome (spider flower, cat’s whiskers), cosmos, orange cosmos and zinnias.
Container gardens may need some attention by mid-summer. Besides regular watering, remember to fertilize every few weeks.
Prune back overgrown plants and deadhead spent flowers to keep the garden looking neat. Don’t forget to have someone water if you are going to be away.
Fertilize biannuals and perennials.
Fertilize roses.
Finish any pruning or fertilizing of shrubs before the end of the month.
Inspect needled evergreens, especially Leyland cypress and arborvitae, for bagworms. If possible, remove them by hand. In early July you can still control them with organic Bt spray (Bacillus thuringiensis). By late July stronger insecticides will be needed. In August the caterpillars enter the pupal phase and are not affected by insecticides.
Remove spent flower heads on annuals to encourage continued flowering.
Watch for powdery mildew on crape myrtle and dogwoods. Apply fungicide where necessary.

Fruits

Maintain regular fungicide sprays on grapes, peaches, plums to prevent fungus diseases. Products containing Captain are most effective.
Prune blackberries and raspberries after harvest.
Summer pruning of fruit trees can be useful. This is a good time to remove water sprouts from apple and pear trees.

Vegetables

Begin planning the fall garden. Brussels sprouts should be planted in July; most other cool season crops in August. You can start seeds in pots for plants such as broccoli, cabbage and collards.
Control weeds in vegetable gardens.
Do not let basil plants flower as it will change the flavor. You can keep pinching out flowers, but the best approach is as soon as the flowers start to form, cut the plants back hard, right above a set of leaves low down on the branch. The stems will quickly resprout. Make a batch or pesto from the harvest.
Harvest vegetables daily. Cucumbers, squash and beans are best picked while small and tender and can mature from flower to fruit in just a couple of days. Refer to the publication on Harvesting Vegetables: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/hil-8108.html.
Plant late crops of squash, bush beans or cucumbers.
To prevent diseases, maintain weekly fungicide sprays. The most commonly used garden product is chlorothalonil (Bravo, etc.). Organic gardeners may want to try Serenade, a new bacterial product. Copper or sulfur sprays are less effective, but offer
a little help.
Try a late crop of tomatoes using transplants.

Other

Keep good records of planting, harvesting, fertilizing, etc.
Protect honeybees. If you must use an insecticide (even organic) spray late in the evening when few bees are active.
Purchase a rain gauge to seem how much water your lawn, ornamentals, vegetables and fruits are receiving each week.
Surplus produce can be donated to the Plant A Row For The Hungry collection at MANNA FoodBank. Take fresh fruits and vegetables to MANNA at 627 Swannanoa River Rd., M-F between 8am and 3:30pm.

Lawn/Garden Maintenance Tips - August
Lawns

Fertilize all warm season turf grasses except centipede grass.
Fertilizer can be applied to cool season lawns in late August if the grass is not drought stressed.
Late August through September is a good time to seed fescue and bluegrass.

Ornamentals

Continue to spray and fertilize roses.
Cut back bush roses by one half to encourage fall blooms.
Do not apply nitrogen fertilizer to shrubs.
Do not prune azaleas and camellias in August.
Fertilize hollies if berry set is heavy.
It is OK to snip the occasional stray branch from shrubs, but this is not a good time to do sheering or drastic pruning.
Plant iris. Clean beds and divide rhizomes. Cut back brown foliage.
Plant late blooming perennials to add color.
Remove old crape myrtle seed pods in early August. They should rebloom in September.
Some plants will bloom until frost if you keep the spent flowers removed. Deadhead butterfly bush, purple coneflowers,
phlox, and roses.
Spruce up container gardens to keep them looking good through fall. Cut back and thin out over-grown plants. Apply some liquid fertilizer if you have not done so recently.
Weeds have been plentiful this year. Try to keep them pulled before they go to seed.

Fruits

Fertilize and irrigate the strawberry bed. The plants are forming next spring’s flower buds in September.
Peach tree borers can kill peach, cherry and plum trees. To prevent infestation, spray the trunks of the trees in late August and early September with an insecticide labeled for borer (usually a type of pyrethroid). For more information see: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/O&T/trees/note141/note141.html.
Prune blackberries and raspberries after harvest.

Vegetables

As garden space is freed up by spent summer crops, fill the space with fall vegetables. Some things to plant now include: Brussel sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, cucumbers, greens, lettuce, mustard, squash and turnips.
Don’t let the veggies go to waste. Have a neighbor check the garden if you are away.
Insect populations are highest late in the season. Check regularly for cabbage worms, aphids, tomato worms and squash borers.
Irish potatoes should be ready to dig.
Plant some late summer herbs to add new life in the fall months.
Remember that surplus produce can be donated to the Plant A Row For The Hungry collection. Fresh fruits and vegetables, in good condition are always welcome. Deliver to MANNA Food Bank at 627 Swannanoa River Road, M-F, 8:00—3:30.
Submit a soil sample to prepare for next year’s garden. Turn-around time is fast this time of year and allows you to apply any needed lime.
Work in organic amendments to soils being prepared for fall gardens.

Other

Check for standing water in plant saucers, clogged gutters and ditches. Dump and refill bird baths weekly. These are typical breeding sites for mosquitoes.
Flavor your sweet tea with fresh mint from your garden.
While mowing and working in the yard, be alert for yellow jacket nests. Populations that have been docile all summer become very defensive of the nest, and therefore are very aggressive beginning in August. You can find more information about yellow jackets at: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/Urban/horn-yj.htm.