Spring is just around the corner, which means that August is the time to start planting. There’s a long list of veggies, fruit and flowering plants that will benefit from being planted this month.
Frost-free areas
Your August veggie planting should include rocket, silverbeet, spring onions, Chinese cabbage, lettuce, parsley, zucchini, pumpkin, leeks and parsnip. You can also plant popular pollinating flowers like nasturtium, petunias, French marigolds and celosia.
Temperate areas
Once you’re confident that the winter frosts have finished, pop in some beetroot, lettuce, parsnip, peas, radish, leek, lettuce, onions, seed potatoes, rocket, silverbeet, and spinach.
Colder areas
This month is great for planting spinach, broad beans, potatoes, peas, onions, parsley, cabbage, broccoli, rocket, silverbeet, cauliflower, lettuce, leek, radish, beetroot and parsnip. It’s also your last chance this year to plant fruit trees such as apples, plums, nectarines, peaches.
To keep your garden in top shape, take the opportunity to spray your roses and fruit trees before they spring to life. Prune apples and pears and dormant roses to remove dead or diseased wood and allow more light into the plant. Fertilise your garden and mulch your beds to lock in nutrients and moisture ahead of the warmer weather. August is ideal for planting larger shrubs and trees while the ground is still soft and relatively wet, which helps the roots get established before the drier summer months.
Lastly, don’t forget to put down some slug pellets to stop all your new plants from getting munched!