Three easy garden chores take most of our time in August — harvesting, watering and taking it all in. Start with the latter right after your afternoon nap.
Harvest
Many homegrown fruits and vegetables can be eaten right out of the ground, off the vine, tree or shrub. Try to harvest when the plant is at its best stage for eating.
• As a general rule, harvest in the early morning after the dew has dried or in the cool of the evening.
• If the vegetables are warm when harvested, remove the heat by submerging them in cold water (especially cucumbers and corn).
• Lettuce, basil, parsley and spinach will continue to grow new foliage for a long harvest period if regularly picked when young. Enjoy right after picking or refrigerate for later use.
• Tomatoes should be left on the vine until ripe, but beans, cucumbers, eggplant and summer squash taste best when picked slightly immature. Store everything but whole tomatoes in the refrigerator.
• Harvest green beans and fava beans as soon as pods start forming, when still tender. Mature snap beans easily snap in half. Harvest shelling beans when pods start bulging and pick before they turn yellow. Harvest dry beans after the pods have dried on the plant. Pull off the pods or pull the whole plant to dry upside-down over a sheet. Dry beans will pop right out of the dried pods. Store in a cool, dry place.
Harvest zucchini regularly and small, 4-5 inches long. Use a sharp knife to cut close to the plant. Eat right away for best flavor. Slice diagonally or in rounds for salads. Cut lengthwise into V to 1-inch slices, coat with olive oil and place on a hot grill. Cook a couple of minutes on each side.
Herbs can be harvested throughout the growing season and have the best flavor before flowering. Store chives, thyme and rosemary in loose plastic bags in the refrigerator. No rinsing needed until right before using. Trim the ends of parsley, basil and cilantro and place in an inch of water out on the counter. They’ll last from a few days up to a week.
Harvest herb leaves from oregano, basil, dill, tarragon and sage for drying. Give the leaves a quick rinse in cold water to remove dirt, and then spread on trays for air-drying between 70 and 90 degrees. Once dry, store the leaves whole in glass jars. Crush leaves just before use.
Most corn cultivars are ready to harvest 20 days after the silks appear. Also look for dried brown silks and plump kernels at the top of the ear. A crushed kernel will be milky if ripe, clear if immature. For short-term storing, husk, seal in plastic bags and refrigerate and store at 32 degrees.
Harvest beet greens when leaves are 6 inches long. Harvest beets anytime, even as small as 1 V inches. Roasting in the oven brings out their rich flavor. Check out a recipe for roasted beet salad at denverpost.com/recipes/ci_18457296
Pull carrots when they are X to 1 V inches in diameter at the top. Green tops won’t hurt you; they just received too much sun. Carefully loosen the soil along the top with a garden fork before pulling. After harvest, remove the tops, leaving a 2-inch stem. Brush off dirt, but don’t wash if they will be stored (wash right before eating).
Add some pop to a summer dish with fresh edible flowers. Try green bean flowers, arugula or radish flowers (if they are still in the garden). More at
In the Landscape
Dropping Leaves. Some trees such as honey locust, birch and ash are experiencing lots of leaf drop despite it being mid-summer. This is a result of weather. Spring rains brought on heavy leaf growth, then when the weather turned warm and hot the trees couldn’t sustain the leaves so they were shed. Mature trees need good drainage and prefer deep, infrequent watering, allowing the soil to dry some between watering. Check the soil for over- or under-watering, especially trees located in turf areas. Use a long screwdriver to check soil moisture; if it goes in too easily, the ground may be overly wet, if too dry, you will have to force it down.
Continue fertilizing hanging baskets, ornamental and vegetable container plants. They need food (and water) regularly all summer and into fall to keep blooming and producing.
Complete the final rose fertilization of the season by mid-August.
Japanese beetles are feeding and causing plant damage. They especially like roses, Virginia creeper, linden trees, green beans and many other ornamental plants, fruits and vegetables. Their chewing results in lacy or skeletonized leaves. Hand pick early in the day to reduce their numbers. Drop them into a jar of soapy water to drown. Do not use beetle traps — they just attract more beetles to the area. If all “squished” remains aren’t removed, lingering scent from the dead beetles will attract more to your garden. More at
• The landscape seems to have more insects, disease and issues this summer. One way to avoid more troubles is to be very careful when spraying any type of product in the garden. The drift from sprays can travel easily and far, causing damage to ornamental plants, fruits and vegetables. Always know what and why you are spraying. Correct identification of the problem is must. Read all label instructions (more isn’t better) and only spray during calm conditions.
