What to do in August in Central Texas

Build soil. Top dress garden beds with compost and mulch. This is also a good time to prep new garden beds and do some sheet mulching. Yes, it's hot. Yes, it's buggy. But cooler days are ahead and fall is one of the most magical seasons to garden here. When the temperatures finally begin to let up, you'll be glad you got a head start.

Prune. Trim back perennials and herbs so they have a chance to bush out in the fall.

Observe. Be in your garden in the mornings and evenings. Notice all the small things. How do different plants interact with each other and the creatures around them? Which plants are particularly hardy and heat-tolerant? Which plants are going into dormancy? Which plants are especially magical in the summertime? What worked and what didn't? Journal about it or take photos to document. Good gardens begin with observation.

Plan. This is when our gardens often go full on feral mode and we're just doing what we can to keep up. As you do a bit of organizing, consider the possibilities for the coming season. Think about the trees, perennials, and wildflower seeds you want to plant. We like making dry erase maps of our different garden areas. That way we can start planning everything out on paper and ordering what we need.

Harvest. Here are just some of the plants you may be harvesting at this time: lemongrass, basil, tulsi, lemon verbena, elderberries, oregano, rosemary, tomatoes, peppers, melons, pumpkins, gourds, nopal, purslane, heat-loving flowers like gomphrena, celosia, and amaranth. Some info about drying homegrown herbs. This is a good time to harvest and process seeds too! Some of the seeds ready to harvest in our yard in August are velvetleaf gaura, bee balm (monarda citriodora), standing cypress, echinacea, tulsi, catnip. We can also save seeds from our favorite heirloom vegetables.

Water. Water in the morning or evening. Use rainwater as often as possible. Add some liquid seaweed to help the plants hold up through stress. The Natural Gardener has some helpful information about watering.

Plant. Assess your energy level for planting new plants in the ground in August. New plants always need extra care, but especially in this heat. If you're going for it, mulch well, water consistently, and consider giving them some temporary shade in the afternoon. Tip: You can also strategically plant under larger heat-loving plants (some examples: peppers, moringa, chaya, curry, amaranth, corn, sunflowers, african blue basil). Planting in the evening is a smart move too. It gives transplants overnight to adjust before facing the extreme heat. Watch for signs of stress like wilting, sunscald, or crispy leaf edges and don’t be discouraged if they take a little time to bounce back. Things to consider planting mid-late Aug:

• Warm-weather annuals - This is a good time to plant another round of warm weather veggies for a fall crop. Plants like corn, beans, cowpeas, okra, heat-loving greens like molokhia, papalo, and sesame, some melons and squashes, cucumbers, basils, tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants are all good candidates. Check the plant's days to maturity (can often find on the seed pack) to make sure that what you're planting has enough time to produce, and this will dictate whether you start from seed or transplant. Once the freeze comes, the season for these plants has passed. It's not worth trying to protect them over the winter.

• Frost-tender perennials - We love growing a wide range of tropical perennials throughout the heat of the summer and we often have them available at our market booth. Many of these (like lemongrass, lemon verbena, pineapple sage, curry, moringa, chaya, ginger, galangal, turmeric, african blue basil, and many others) can be overwintered in the ground and will come back if well-mulched. They can also be grown in containers and brought indoors.

• (Seeds) Cool-weather annuals - Fall is a great time for herbs and edible flowers, and you can start seeds like calendula, borage, fennel, cilantro/coriander. Borage and calendula love cool weather but can only survive light freezes, so seed starting is a bit of a moving target. If you start them around now and protect them from extreme heat, you'll have a long-enough growing window to get plenty of blooms. Then once in the ground, you can cover them to overwinter through extreme cold and you'll have well-established plants in early spring.

• (Seeds) Frost-hardy plants - If you're growing from seed, August is time to start leafy greens (like lettuce and chard) and brassicas (think broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, kohlrabi, collard greens, mustard greens, arugula). You can start your seeds indoors under grow lights. You can also start them outdoors on a back porch or a protected area, but your seedlings will need a lot more babying. Things to consider are that soil must stay consistently moist for the seeds to germinate, your seedlings will need sufficient light so they don't get leggy, and you'll need to protect your baby plants from things like heavy rainfall, bugs (in the heat, cabbage worms will find your plants quick), and birds and toads and squirrels. Another option is to buy transplants from a local nursery (like us!) in September and October, which is what many gardeners opt to do. You can also do a combo of direct seeding later in the fall + purchasing established transplants. We like this method, as it spreads out your harvest and gives the little seedlings something to look up to as they grow. :)

To learn more about seed starting, companion planting, and permaculture, check out our upcoming events at smalltownfarm.com/events