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Before fall, some tasks for the edible gardener (and everyone else)

Assess and prepare as the summer winds down

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Kathy Morrison PUBLISHED AUG 27, 2026

Raggedy tomato plants -- tear them out now or let them stay awhile? This one is done, really, but others may not be yet. Kathy Morrison

Late August seems to be a slow time in the garden. Production is winding down on the summer vegetables. The cool-season plants are still seedlings, if they are planted at all yet. Perennials may look tired or ragged.

But this is an ideal time to assess and prepare, before the big fall events come roaring in and time disappears.

Assess the summer

-- Give your tomato plants a realistic assessment. Which ones are done and should come out? Any plant that is more brown than green definitely should be cut down, but it might not be that obvious. Are there new flowers? And which plants are hanging in there, and might even revive a bit in fall? (Black or purple tomatoes especially like cooler weather.)

-- Before you forget, make notes on which tomatoes did well, where they were purchased (if transplants) and when the seeds were started if you did that yourself. Then add these observations to a 2027 calendar (this Gardening Guide and Calendar is on sale now) for reference after the holidays. This routine also works for peppers, eggplant, squash or any other summer food plants.

-- Go through your summer seeds, and toss any empty packages (yes, they accumulate) or seeds that are now out of date. I also toss "disappointment" seeds if they got a second try this year and still didn't impress.

-- When getting rid of spent plants, don't yank them out -- instead, cut them off at the base of the main stem. This leaves the roots in place for now, allowing the active microbial community to remain intact for awhile. The roots can be dug out later.

-- Encourage a new round of flowers on perennials by pruning back shaggy or ragged stems.

Prepare for fall

-- Work compost or organic fertilizer (I like poultry manure) into any planting area that will be the site of cool-weather vegetables. Water it in well and let the microbes go to work.

-- Not a cool-weather vegetable gardener? Plan to put in a cover crop to control weeds, improve soil health and prevent erosion during the rainy season. Crimson clover, vetch, field peas and bell beans all are legumes that fix nitrogen in the soil, and they look nice while growing, too.

-- August offers a last chance to prune cherry and apricot trees, which are susceptible to diseases if pruned in wet weather.

-- Plant cool-weather seeds! Seeds can be started in a shady spot outdoors now, then transplanted when plants are bigger. Lettuces can be direct-seeded into containers. If you are planning to grow brassicas, such as broccoli, kale and cabbage, plan now how to protect them from pests such as cabbageworms (small green caterpillars). Keep an eye out for those small white butterflies, which lay eggs on cole crops.

-- Buy or order garlic now. Top varieties sell out quickly. Garlic is best planted here in later October, but can go in as late as early December. Plan where it will be planted, too. Garlic stays in place all winter, then is harvested in May or June.

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vegetables edible gardening fall autumn seeds cool-season vegetables soil summer August Sacramento gardening

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Flowers in My Back Yard Series

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Aug. 18: Pollinators adore scabiosa, aka pincushion flower

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July 14: How to keep hydrangeas happy

July 7: Grow these bright cosmos for bees and butterflies

June 30: Agapanthus adds blue fireworks to the garden

June 23: Easy-care gazanias fill those hot corners

June 16: Daylilies are perfect for water-wise gardens (and a lot more)

June 9: Grow coneflowers for pollinators -- and yourself

June 2: Sunflowers capture Sacramento's summer attitude

May 29: Are your roses going 'blind'?

May 26: Zinnias are the summer flowers every garden needs

May 19: Plant dahlias now for late-summer flower power

May 12: Know your coreopsis from your bidens

May 5: Mums the word on Mother's Day weekend

April 28: Majestic Matilija poppy is worth a look

April 21: Celebrate roses, America's favorite flower

April 14: Small flowers with outsized impact

April 7: Calendulas do double duty

April 3: Make Easter lilies last for years to come

March 31: In praise of a pollinator magnet (small-leaf salvias)

March 24: Azaleas brighten shady spots

March 17: The perfect flower for beginners? Try zonal geraniums

March 10: Keep camellias happy for years to come

March 3: Fruit tree blossoms are a fleeting joy

Feb. 27: Are your roses looking rusty?

Feb. 24: Treasure spring daffodils now and for years to come

Feb. 17: How and why to grow wildflowers

Feb. 10: Let's talk Valentine's Day roses

Feb. 3: Why grow flowers?

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Garden checklist for week of Aug. 16

During this break in the heat, feed your garden. Make sure to water before and after applying fertilizer.

* In the garden, direct seed beets, carrots, leaf lettuce and turnips.

* Plant potatoes.

* Harvest tomatoes, beans, squash, pepper and eggplants to prompt plants to keep producing. Give your plants a deep watering twice a week, more if planted in containers. Also, give them a boost with phosphate-rich fertilizer to help fruiting.

* Watch out for caterpillars and hornworms in the vegetable garden. They can strip a plant bare in one day. Pick them off plants by hand in early morning or late afternoon.

* Feed citrus trees their last round of fertilizer for the year. This will give a boost to the fruit that’s still small.

* Mulch can be your garden’s best friend – it conserves moisture while blocking out weeds. But don't let mulch mound around stalks, stems or trunks. That can promote rot.

* Camellia leaves looking a little yellow? Give them some chelated iron. That goes for azaleas and gardenias, too.

* Pick up after your fruit trees. Clean up debris and dropped fruit; this cuts down on insects and prevents the spread of brown rot. Then feed fruit trees with slow-release fertilizer for better production for next year.

* To prolong bloom into fall, feed begonias, fuchsias and container plants. Always water before fertilizing.

* Fertilize fall-blooming perennials, too. Chrysanthemums can be fed until the buds start to open.

* Prepare for a fall full of flowers by paying a little extra attention to your garden. Cut off spent blooms from roses, annuals and perennials, then give them a boost of fertilizer. Make sure to water plants before feeding. Roses will rebloom about six to eight weeks after deadheading.

* 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.

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