Gardening Tips for July 2006
by Thea Fiskin, UC Master Gardener

Well we've already had the first heat wave this summer, time to limit working in the garden to early in the morning and early evening. July is usually not a month to do any major planting instead maintain container plants, harvest herbs, fruits, vegetables, and of course keeping the lawn mowed. When you relax in the air conditioning, check out the bulb catalogs arriving in the mail this month.

LAWNS
Grasses should be watered deeply and infrequently to promote deeper root growth and to prevent crabgrass. Avoid watering in the late evening; leaves that don't dry during the warm evenings are prone to fungal diseases. Instead, water lawns in the early morning.

Warm season lawns like Bermuda, St. Augustine and zoysiagrass will benefit from fertilizer this month. You can also plant, patch and reseed these heat lovers all summer long. Cool season lawns like tall fescue and perennial rye don't like the heat and their growth slows down until the weather cools off. It's better to let fescue lawns "get through" July and August without too much help, then fertilize and/or reseed again in September. Raise the mower height about a half an inch for a couple of months to help reduce the heat stress. Also try not to mow in the same direction all the time; vary your path so you don't form ruts.

WEED CONTROL
Crabgrass - This summer annual weed thrives in lawns that are watered too often. Mowing your lawn a little higher and watering less often will discourage seed germination. The best and easiest way to prevent crabgrass is to apply a preemergence herbicide in winter. Now you can selectively try to remove crabgrass from your lawn with a postemergence herbicide like Weedhoe (MSMA) coupled with a preemergence application of which there are several herbicides to choose from.

Nutsedge - Nutsedge thrives in wet, waterlogged conditions, so improve drainage and keep the area as dry as possible. Spot treatments of Roundup and Finale or watered in herbicides can be used in flowerbeds, while Manage and Weedhoe (MSMA) is available for use in lawns. Nutsedge is one tough weed so be diligent with hand pulling, hoeing, spraying and avoid over-irrigation to get rid of it.

Spurge- This is the flat creeping weed with a red spot on the leaves. When you pull it, sticky sap gets on your hands. Ants love it. Hand pull or hoe spurge plants before they set seeds and remove them from the site. In flowerbeds spot treat with Roundup, apply a preemergence herbicide and add mulch to prevent seed germination. To discourage infestations in lawns mow fescue at 3 inches to shade seedlings and fertilize bermudagrass to keep it healthy.

CRITTERS
Spider mites - Signs for these tiny little critters are mottled leaves and ultra fine webs, plants along dusty roads are particularly susceptible. Wash off with plain water, use insecticidal soap if necessary.

Tomato hornworms - These big green guys can strip a tomato plant of leaves and deposit large black droppings. Handpick or use BT (Bacillus thuringiensis) sometimes called caterpillar killer.

Tobacco budworm - If your geraniums, petunias or roses have stopped blooming the culprit may be the tobacco budworm. The worm is the larvae of a night flying moth. It lays its eggs in the flower buds, and the hatching larvae feeds on the bud then travel down the stem. Try spraying BT or a rose systemic, however do not use rose systemic near any plants you plan to eat.

GARDEN CHORES