Dig In: Garden checklist for week of July 23

“Very hot weather will continue across interior #NorCal today with record highs possible,” added the weather service Saturday. “Temperatures will begin to trend downward beginning Sunday, and will be around average early next week.”

For the record book, Sacramento’s all-time record high – 116 degrees – was set Sept. 6 last year. That broke a record of 114 that had stood since 1925.

“If you have access to air conditioning, use it,” cautioned the weather service on Saturday. “Fans may not be adequate.”

Fortunately, this heat wave is expected to pass soon. According to the weather service, Sacramento will be back in the 90s by Monday with a forecast high of 97 – normal for late July. By Wednesday, breezy conditions will keep afternoons refreshingly cool; the forecast high for Thursday and Friday is 91 degrees – 17 degrees cooler than that record July 21.

With that in mind, postpone outdoor tasks such as mowing, weeding and planting until midweek or later if possible. Even on those cooler days, take advantage of early mornings when temperatures will be only in the 60s or 70s.

* One good thing about hot days: Most lawns stop growing when temperatures top 95 degrees. When you do mow, set mower blades on high; taller grass shades its roots and copes better with high heat.

* Keep your vegetable garden watered, mulched and weeded. Water before 8 a.m. to reduce the chance of fungal infection and to conserve moisture.

* Wait on fertilizing vegetables and blooming annuals until temperatures cool later this week. Make sure to water deeply before feeding.

* Don’t let tomatoes wilt or dry out completely. Give tomatoes a deep watering two to three times a week.

* Harvest vegetables promptly to encourage plants to produce more. Squash especially tends to grow rapidly in hot weather. Keep an eye on zucchini.

* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushy plants and more flowers in September.

* Remove spent flowers from roses, daylilies and other bloomers as they finish flowering.

* Pinch off blooms from basil so the plant will grow more leaves.

* Cut back lavender after flowering to promote a second bloom.

* It’s not too late to add a splash of color. Plant petunias, snapdragons, zinnias and marigolds; all are great for containers.

* From seed, plant corn, pumpkins, radishes, winter squash and sunflowers.

* Indoors, start seedlings for fall vegetable planting, including bunching onion, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, radicchio and lettuce.

* Sow seeds of perennials in pots for fall planting including yarrow, coneflower and salvia.