August in the Country Garden: Which Autumn Plants to Plant Now

Mini-cheat sheet for everyone planning to go to the country garden in autumn. Experts from Derevo Park tell what else you can plant and how to prepare the garden for cold weather.

Conduct an inventory

Create a list of what you like about your garden and what you would like to change. Which plants have grown too large? Do your flower beds look good or do they need to be altered and enhanced? Think about projects for the next year: building a patio or organizing a water feature.

Transplant perennials

Carefully inspect your garden. Perhaps your rhododendrons don't thrive well in full sun, and the spirea would look better at another end of the garden?

Now that it's getting cooler, you can divide and relocate perennials. Late summer and early autumn mark the second root growth of the year: plants store nutrients and can be transplanted with minimal stress. Mulch the roots with a layer of mulch for additional winter protection.

Make Autumn Purchases

We're used to visiting garden centers in spring, but many of the best late-season plants look unattractive early in the season, so some nurseries don't even display them for sale. But in late summer and early autumn, you can see them in full bloom and buy them at a discount.

Don't Forget About Bulbs

Narcissus, hyacinths, tulips or the currently popular exotic bulbs will decorate your garden in early spring if planted in autumn. By the way, it's best to buy bulbs in late summer.

Rare varieties are quickly sold out, and if you want your plantings to perfectly match your original plan, it’s better to act fast. Many rare varieties can now be ordered online, which also takes some time. Better to prepare in advance.

Tip: if you don’t want the garden to look empty, combine flower beds with spring- and autumn-blooming plants. For example, narcissus and muscaris can be paired with brunneras and baptlias.

Before winter arrives, you’ll enjoy a combination of Hosta variegata and Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass. Hosta blooms in late June, when the feather reed grass only shows a bunch of green leaves, but by August the picture changes: the honey-colored faded hosta flowers contrast beautifully with the sharp shoots of the grass.

Work on the Vegetable Garden

You can still plant a vegetable garden and harvest a crop: leafy greens, aromatic herbs, and peas. These will fit perfectly into a decorative garden instead of plants that have finished their season.

Below is a list of several plants that germinate quickly, and if planted now, you can harvest a decent yield:

• spicy greens (arugula, mustard);

• leaf lettuce;

• peas (look for dwarf and frost-resistant varieties);

• spinach;

• onion.

There is another category of garden crops that need time to develop their root systems. Therefore, it's better to plant them now and let them overwinter to get a good harvest next season:

• garlic (September–October);

• shallot (September–October);

• berries (e.g., blueberries).

Take Care of Nature

Instead of throwing lawn clippings and organic waste into plastic bags and cluttering landfills, try turning them into organic fertilizer (compost). You can use it for mulching before winter or restoring soil in early spring.

To make compost, layer the waste and let it decompose. If you want to mulch soil before winter, take already matured compost (which looks like brown soil) from the compost container and spread it around the root zones of shrubs and trees.

If you want to get fertilizer in spring, leave the layered organic material and use the matured compost during spring work.

Cover photo: Pinterest