The Vegas Voice 8-20

August Heat & Your Garden
By: Howard Galin / Happy Gardening
In August, because of extremely high
temperatures, prolonged daylight and minimal
humidity, keeping our gardens healthy and
attractive can be quite a challenge! I have listed four areas that require
your garden attention.
1. Keep adequate moisture levels around your plants. While many
native plants have adapted to our August conditions, many non-natives
that have been introduced into our neighborhoods require more TLC.
As I tour neighborhoods, I see numerous flowering shrubs and bushes
that are heat and moisture sensitive. Roses, for example, require moist
soil and moderate temperatures to blossom.
Excessive sunshine reflecting on rock mulch can raise the ground
temperature to levels above 160 F severely damaging or killing many
plants. In order to protect these non-natives, it is important to create an
“organic mulch” buffer around these plants extending from their base to
the width of their branches.
This will prevent heat reflecting off of the ground and burning leaves,
flowers and stems. Organic (wood) mulch also retains the moisture and
can lower ground temperature by 60 degrees!
2. Keeping plants healthy. The hot and dry conditions put stress on
your plants. This encourages diseases and insects to invade.
Be vigilant when signs of disease or insect infestation appear. In
addition to visible insects on many plants, if you have agaves, keep in
mind that during August, the agave weevil lays eggs underground that
will hatch and eat the roots and kill these plants in the future.
To prevent this, I recommend
using a “systemic” insecticide
poured around the plants
and absorbed by the roots. In
August, Opuntia and Cholla
cactus are attacked by cochineal
bugs (resembling small cotton
balls) that cover these plants
and suck their juices, scarring
and killing the plants. Spittle
bugs (resembling little pearls)
attack rosemary doing the same
damage.
3. Pruning. With the
exception of palms and plants
such as lantanas, I would refrain from any extensive pruning since
pruning stimulates new plant growth.
4. Should you add new plants in August? Except for palms and cactus,
the answer is NO! New plantings need milder temperatures and less
sunlight in order to establish strong roots and to protect young leaves
and buds.
Have any gardening questions? Contact me at: Theplantwhisperer28@
gmail.com
Howard Galin, a/k/a: “The Plant Whisperer” is a retired NYC
school administrator, transplanted in Las Vegas who devotes his
time to communicating with and lecturing about our native
plants.
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