The Garden in August: what to plant in your zone 9 garden

Here in Central Florida Zone 9, August is the start of the fall gardening season and the best time to garden here in Florida. We basically have the next 9 months of continuous gardening starting with warm-season crops, then cool-season crops followed by a final round of warm-season crops before the weather gets too hot and wet to grow much. While August is still very hot and wet there are a few warm-season crops you can start planting out into the garden now as well as many crops that you can start indoors to get a head start on the season.

Along with getting your kitchen garden started there are other tasks that you can also do this month such as planting shrubs and trees, as well as pruning and mulching in order to keep your garden and landscape in check.

In this post I will go over the garden tasks you should be doing in the month of August as well as provide a list of vegetable, herb and flower crops that you can plant now.

While I live in Central Florida, Zone 9b, and much of this post pertains to Florida gardening, you may find many of the tips and information in this post helpful if you live in other regions that are zone 9. While each region in a particular growing zone may have its own “climate” most of the gardening tasks and growing guides in this post are the same no matter which zone 9 you live in.

August Garden Tasks

Here is a list of garden tasks to do this month to get ready for the fall gardening season as well as tasks to help keep your landscape maintained.

• Prepare garden beds for fall crops

  • Remove spent summer plants

  • Get your soil tested

  • Amend garden beds with necessary fertilizers

• Plan out your gardening season

• Buy seeds

• Start seeds and plant out transplants

• Continue harvesting summer crops/fruit

• Prune necessary trees, shrubs and perennials

• Manage any pests and diseases

• Continue to avoid fertilizing unless necessary

• Take advantage of the rainy season by planting any trees and shrubs.

• Mulch garden beds and pathways

1. Prepping Your Garden Beds for fall

Many gardeners in norther climates typically give their gardens a full refresh in the spring but because Florida has different growing seasons, fall is a great time to do that.

This month, continue harvesting your summer crops and begin removing any spent summer crops that you may have. Once you have your beds cleared you can amend them by adding more nutrients for the fall crops.

Before amending your beds, consider getting your soil tested if you haven’t already. Often times your soil can have an excess or depletion of certain nutrients therefore it is recommend that you test your soil once a year, usually in spring or fall, before amending your garden beds. By testing your soil you will help prevent any nutrient issues in the future as well as save money on unnecessary fertilizers.

I like to do my soil test in late summer when I am not growing much, this helps me determine the best cover crops to grow and what nutrients to add. This ensures that my garden is prepped and ready by the time I need to plant the first round of fall crops.

Amend your beds by adding 1-2 inches of compost and adding the necessary fertilizers based on your soil test. If you opted to not get your soil tested then I recommend amending your beds with an organic slow-release, all purpose fertilizer.

If this is your first garden, be sure to read my previous post, A Beginner’s Guide to Starting a Garden in 7 Simple Steps. This will help you get your new garden off to the best possible start!

2. Plan out your garden and buy seeds

This month, take the time to plan out your garden and the crops that you plan on growing in the upcoming seasons. Once you have your plan, sort through your seed collection and buy any seeds that you may need. If you’re not sure where to buy your seeds from then you may find this post helpful; 8 of The Best Places to Buy Garden Seeds.

4. Start Seeds

August is a great time to start many of your warm-season crops. If you haven’t already, now is the time to start long-season crops like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant indoors so that you have enough time to harvest before your first frost.

You can also direct seed many of your fast growing warm-season crops in August such as corn, okra, squash, beans and melons.

Most of your cool-season vegetable and flower crops can be started indoors now as well so that they will be ready to plant outdoors in September and October.

Some seeds do better started indoors while others can be directly sown into the garden beds, if you are new to seed starting you can check out my Seed Starting 101 (Part 1): Direct Sow Vs Transplant post to learn more about the advantages and disadvantages of each method.

I will also give a list of which crops to plant in August and the best methods of planting them later in this post.

5. Planting

August is still pretty hot and wet and while most transplants will benefit by waiting until September to be planted out into the garden, you can plant out crops such as tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and tomatillos if you have transplants ready. These crops will benefit by planting them in a place that gets shade in the hottest part of the day or by providing a shade cloth until temperatures cool down a little.

Whether you’re looking to add new fruit trees or ornamental shrubs, fall is a great time to plant new trees and shrubs so that they can have time to establish before spring. Take advantage of our rainy season this month and let nature do the watering. Just make sure to keep an eye on the amount of rainfall that you are getting so that your new plants get enough water until they have established.

6. Plant Maintanence

Due to our high amounts of rain in the summer, most counties in Florida have fertilizer bans June-September with the exception of edible gardens to prevent excess runoff into our waterways. Whether you live in Florida or in another zone 9 state, check your local ordinances to see if you have any fertilizer bans in your region.

Even if you do not have a fertilizer ban in your state or region consider waiting until late September/early October to give your plants their regular fall fertilizing. During the hottest parts of summer many plants are stressed from the heat and by adding fertilizer you will encourage the plant to put on new grow which could potentially stress them further.

It is recommended that you do fertilize your citrus trees and amend your garden beds this month, otherwise only fertilize plants in your landscape if you notice that they have nutrient deficiencies or if they are new plantings.

Remove spent summer annuals and prune any necessary perennials, shrubs and trees. I like to give my summer perennials a good pruning since many of them typically start looking legging or unhealthy from all the rain, this will encourage bushy growth and keep your plants from getting leggy. You can also give your roses a light pruning and continue deadheading as well.

The hot, wet weather of August leaves no shortage of pests or diseases. I personally do not like to spray anything, organic or not, unless absolutely necessary. Keeping a healthy, balanced ecosystem in your garden and avoiding herbicides and insecticides as much as possible is the ideal way to keep pests in check.

If you need to resort to spraying make sure to use an organic option. The best practice to keeping pests and diseases in check is to inspect your plants often to remove any pests or eggs and treat any diseases that you find before they get out of control.

Finally, continue mulching your garden beds and pathways this month to discourage weeds and retain moisture.

Crops to plant this month

Below are a list of vegetable, herb and flower crops that you can plant this month.

Most warm-season crops can either be directly sown into the garden or started indoors.

Below are the recommend planting methods that you will see next to each crop. Most crops can be grown from seed whether you start them indoors or direct sow them into the garden.

You can also choose to buy your transplants from your local nursery or start you seeds indoors and transplant them into your garden once they’ve reached transplant size.

D = Direct Sow T = Use Transplants

Vegetables

Direct Seed/Transplant Outdoors

• Beans (D)

• Carrots (D)

• Corn (D/T)

• Cucumber (D/T)

• Eggplant (T)

• Okra (D/T)

• Peppers (T)

• Southern Peas (D)

• Winter & Summer Squash (D/T)

• Tomatoes (T)

• Watermelon (D/T)

Start indoors

• Arugula

• Bok Choy

• Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Cabbage

• Cauliflower

• Celery

• Chinese Cabbage

• Collards

• Eggplant

• Kale

• Leek

• Lettuce/Endive

• Mustard Greens

• Onions (bulb sets or seed)

• Peppers

• Potatoes

• Swiss Chard

• Tomatoes

• Tomatillos

Herbs

October-May is the best time to plant herbs in Florida when the weather isn’t as hot and humid. Some of the following herbs will do fine planted outside now but if you can hold off another month then they will do much better. You can start many herbs indoors now and transplant them out into the garden in late September/October. While you can start many of your herbs from seed it is usually easier to buy certain ones like thyme, rosemary, oregano and mint as transplants.

Start Indoors

• Anise

• Basil

• Chamomile

• Chives

• Dill

• Fennel

• Lemon Balm

• Parsley

• Sage

• Stevia

Direct Seed/Transplant Outdoors

• Bay Laurel (T)

• Ginger (rhizomes)

• Mint (T)

• Oregano (T)

• Rosemary (T)

• Tarragon (D/T)

• Thyme (T)

• Tumeric (rhizomes)

Flowers

Direct Sow/Transplant Outdoors

• Tithonia (D/T)

• Salvia (T)

• Sunflower (D)

• Zinnia (D/T)

Start Indoors

• Ageratum

• Amaranthus

• Alyssum

• Aster

• Baby’s Breath

• Calendula

• Carnation

• Celosia

• Cosmos

• Dahlia (seeds/tubers)

• Dianthus

• Delphinium

• Echinacea

• Forget-me-nots

• Foxglove

• Gomphrena

• Lisianthus

• Marigold

• Nicotiana

• Pansies/Violets

• Phlox

• Rudbeckia

• Salvia

• Scabiosa

• Snapdragon

• Stock

• Strawflower

• Verbena

• Yarrow

• Zinnia

August Garden Tips

• Use a shade cloth to help protect plants during the hottest part of the day.

• Water deeply on the days that you do not get sufficient rain.

• Know your hardiness zone and check your local planting guide to find out what and when the best time to plant for your zone and climate is. I often refer to UF’s Florida Growing Calendar for Florida growing guides.

• If you live in other zone 9 regions be sure to get familiar with your particular climate as growing conditions can vary slightly by location. I go a little more in depth on this is my previous post A Beginner’s Guide to Starting a Garden in 7 Simple Steps.

Happy Planting!

There you have it, a list of garden tasks that you should complete in the month of August as well as a list of vegetable, herb and flowers that you can plant now! I hope that this post inspired you and if you found this information valuable please share the love by sharing or pinning this post! Also, feel free to leave any questions or suggestions in the comments below! Happy planting!

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