By Kerry Peetz
Colorado Master Gardener

August has officially pitched its tent in Colorado. While the alignment of the corn stalks — and the impending return of school buses — suggests summer is winding down, our gardens clearly missed the memo. Under our signature high-altitude sunshine, paired with the hot temperatures and lack of rain, the region’s landscapes are just trying to survive.  

If you listen closely, your cucumbers, which are prime at 6 to 8 inches, are calling you to harvest. Your bell peppers, which you can pick the moment they look big enough to stuff, should be getting close. Meanwhile, when the onions play dead, dropping their green tops, that’s the signal they are ready for the pantry.

Your tomatoes, however, require a psychological trick. Keep watering them reliably for now, but come late August, cut off the tap. A little moisture stress panics the vines into ripening their fruit before the first frost.

Once any plant crosses the finish line, evict it to the compost pile. Leaving dropped fruit behind is essentially opening an all-you-can-eat buffet for pests. And with these sweltering temperatures, it’s a hot, home-cooked meal!

In the flower beds, maintenance is a game of tough love. Keep deadheading spent blooms to trick your perennials into thinking youth is eternal.

If you notice a perennial with an actual hole in its center — looking less like a prize specimen and more like a floral donut — it is crying out to be divided. Late summer is the perfect time to split these spring and summer bloomers, giving them a fresh lease on life. Just ensure fresh transplants get consistent hydration.

For your roses, the kitchen closes Aug. 15. Mark it in ink: after mid-month, withholding fertilizer prevents tender new growth that would easily freeze in an early autumn snap.

Treat your trees and shrubs like a guest preparing for a long winter nap. Put away the pruning shears and the fertilizer; stimulating new growth now is a death sentence when the fall freeze hits. The lone exception is removing dead or broken limbs. Instead of feeding them, just keep the hose running (only on your waterwise days). Deep watering now builds the root strength required to survive the chilly months ahead.

Finally, allow your drought-stressed, heat-dormant turf to rest. Avoid mowing scalped lawns or mowing them too short in the summer heat. Control weeds to reduce water competition. Avoid core cultivation (aeration) when the soil is dry and little irrigation water is available in hot weather. Avoid irrigating in windy conditions and during rainfall.

Now, grab your sun hat and your trowel. August isn’t the end of the gardening season; it’s just the homestretch.

Submit gardening questions to csumg2@elpasoco.com or call 719-520-7684. The in-person help desk is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Visit elpaso.extension.colostate.edu and register for upcoming classes at epcextension.eventbrite.com.