What We’re Doing in our Garden This August
August always feels like the garden is trying to give us everything at once.
After weeks of dry weather, we've finally had a little rain — just enough to freshen everything up without soaking the ground. We could certainly do with more. Living on the side of a hill means the water never sits for long, and after such a dry spell we're already starting to worry about the well. Even so, the garden is full of colour, the borders are overflowing, and every trip outside ends with another basket of fruit or vegetables heading back to the kitchen.
If you're wondering what to sow in August in Ireland, there's still plenty to do. While we're harvesting the best of summer, we're also sowing salads, herbs, winter brassicas and autumn root crops to keep the garden productive right through autumn, winter and even into next spring. That's one of the joys of gardening in Ireland — just as one season reaches its peak, the next has already quietly begun.
One surprise this year has been the tomatoes. Despite the fantastic summer, they've been much slower to ripen than we'd expected. We usually have bags of them in the honesty shop by now! We planted the tomatoes out a little later than usual because the overwintering crops in the tunnel were slower to finish, and the hottest spell of the summer made the polytunnel almost too warm for good pollination. Sometimes too much of a good thing can slow plants down. Thankfully, they're finally beginning to colour up, and we expect the harvest to gather pace over the next few weeks.
So far, we've only picked enough for ourselves to snack on while wandering around the garden and to keep our kitchen supplied, but we know there's a lot more to come. There's always something magical about that first proper tomato of the year. After months of sowing, potting on, watering, pruning and waiting, a warm tomato picked straight from the vine makes it all worthwhile.
Meanwhile, apples are swelling on the trees, yellow raspberries are beginning to ripen, courgettes are arriving daily, cucumbers are thriving, blueberries are coming to an end, and the pumpkins and winter squash are beginning to take over the garden.
It's a wonderful kind of busy. We're also spending plenty of time trimming hedges, pulling out self-seeded trees and roots that have appeared where they're definitely not wanted, and trying to stay on top of watering, feeding, pruning, harvesting and, of course, the endless weeding.
Our August List — what we're doing
Harvesting tomatoes
The tomatoes are finally beginning to ripen. After a slower start than we'd expected, the polytunnel and outdoor tomato beds are slowly filling with colour. Every morning starts with a walk through the rows, checking which varieties are ready and tasting a few straight from the vine. After waiting all summer, those first warm tomatoes never disappoint.
As more fruit begins to ripen, we're gradually removing the leaves below the trusses to improve airflow and help sunlight reach the fruit. We're also pinching out the growing tips of indeterminate varieties, allowing the plants to put their energy into ripening tomatoes rather than producing more vine.
Picking summer fruit
August is one of the busiest harvesting months of the year. We're picking wild strawberries, yellow raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, cucumbers, courgettes and the first elderberries. Anything that doesn’t go to the honesty shop goes straight into the freezer or the kitchen while it's at its very best.
Planting winter brassicas
Beds cleared from onions and early beetroot are being replanted with chard, kale, winter cabbage, cauliflower and purple sprouting broccoli that we sowed earlier in the summer. It always feels strange planting for winter while the sun is still shining, but future us is always grateful.
Sowing autumn salads
Rocket, baby spinach, lettuce, mustard greens and chicories are still being sown every couple of weeks. The cooler nights make germination much easier than it was earlier in the summer, and succession sowing means we'll continue picking fresh salads well into autumn.
Oriental greens
Pak choi, mizuna and Chinese cabbage are all being sown now for autumn harvests. They love the cooler conditions that begin to arrive towards the end of the month.
Beetroot, turnips and swedes
There's still plenty of time for another sowing to carry us through autumn and winter. A little moisture now makes all the difference for successful germination.
Herbs
We're continuing to sow parsley, coriander and dill while trimming perennial herbs to encourage one last flush of growth before autumn. It's also our last chance to give the lavender a tidy before winter arrives.
Keeping an eye on the orchard
The apples continue to swell, pears are developing beautifully, and we're watching carefully as more fruit begins to ripen. The birds seem to know exactly when everything is ready too, so we're constantly putting bird-safe netting over anything they might beat us to.
Other Jobs Around the Garden
Feed fruiting crops weekly with seaweed and comfrey tea.
Water deeply during dry spells rather than little and often.
Keep deadheading flowers to encourage more blooms.
Prune cherries, plums and damsons while they're still in leaf.
Continue tying in tomatoes and removing side shoots.
Save seed from beans, herbs and flowers that have performed particularly well this year.
Keep on top of weeds before they have a chance to set seed.
Seeds for the Season Ahead
Although August feels like peak summer, it's one of the best months to think ahead. Many autumn and winter vegetables are being sown now, and there's still plenty of time for salads, herbs, beetroot, turnips, swedes and flowers.
You'll find a growing range of organically grown, open-pollinated heritage seeds in our online store and at the Honesty Farm Shop, all chosen because they perform well in Irish gardens and, most importantly, taste exceptional.
Until next month, happy growing.