Gardeners' notes - jobs to do in August

Clip lavender

Cutting back lavender now when it’s finished flowering helps to keep the growth strong and retains a neat, compact shape.  Clip all the spent flowers and shear the foliage back by about a third, taking care not to cut too far into the oldest woody branches.

The foliage should re-sprout in the coming weeks, with plenty of time to mature and withstand the colder weather to come in the winter.

Sow spinach

If you want a good supply of greens from now until spring, try sowing winter varieties of spinach, such as ‘Perpetual’, ‘Winter Giant’ or ‘Atlanta’. 

Sow seeds into 2cm deep drills and keep the young plants well watered once they’ve germinated to prevent them from bolting.  Make sure you sow plenty of plants as the leaves will not quickly replenish once they’re picked.

Don’t water your lawn

Even if it’s looking brown and parched after a hot, dry summer, it’s unnecessary to water your lawn and wastes water as the grass will bounce back, greening up quickly once rain returns.

Save water instead for the plants that most need it in dry conditions: seedlings, cuttings and young plants or anything newly planted; those that need moist conditions to survive; also thirsty plants in a greenhouse or conservatory such as tomatoes and cucumbers.