August flower garden diary from Gardenaction

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Water in the evenings, ensuring that the soil is fully soaked. Watering which just wets the surface can be worse than no water at all. It will attract the roots nearer to the surface, exactly where you do not want them to be. Lawns may also need watering with a sprinkler, although grass is much tougher than many imagine.

Some plants put on a spurt of growth in the warm weather, dahlias are a good example. Have a look round your garden one evening, and stake any plants that may be blown over by a strong wind.

Sweet Peas with their elegant stems and delightful fragrant flowers make excellent cut flowers. Cutting them often has the added benefit of encouraging the production of more flowers.

Continue to dead head flowers as soon as blooms begin to fade. It really does encourage more flowers later in the season.

Keep the weeds at bay - if left to their own devices, they will suck the moisture and goodness from the soil. Mulching with bark, rotted compost or the like will do a good job in keeping weeds at bay.

Hydrangea, buddleia and berberis are good candidates for semi-ripe cuttings. With a sharp knife, cut off a 10cm (4in) shoot, where the tip is green new wood turning to browner older wood. Insert the cutting into normal potting compost in a small pot. Cover the pot with a plastic bottle, polythene bag or put it in a cold frame. Keep the cutting outdoors in a cool, shady place until it has rooted (next spring). It can then be planted in it's final position.

Madonna Lilies (Lilium candidum) start root growth from late august onwards, so plant them this month. The should be planted so that they are covered by only 5cm (2in) of soil in a sunny position