Gardening by the Moon Weekend To-Do
An idea as old as agriculture, based both folklore and superstition but there are scientific ideas to back it up.
- Lunar Phase: New Moon Sunday, August 4
- Saturday-Sunday: Moon in the sign of Cancer - Weed, control pests
- To prevent the annual fall visit from raccoons, now is the time to apply Beneficial Nematodes or Bonide Annual Grub Beater to turf and other perennial feeding grounds. It's not advisable to wait until they appear, as raccoons will do much damage before moving on.
- Be sure to keep the area under fruit trees clear of fallen and rotting fruit. All this debris is a perfect breeding ground for problems such as Yellow Jackets, Roof Rats, and other rodents.
Later in the Week
- Tuesday and Wednesday: Moon in the sign of Virgo - Plant Herbs
- Rosemary, Sage, and other woody herbs grow well in containers.
Other Things To-do
- Support the limbs of apples, peaches, pears, and others overloaded with ripening fruit and sagging. The major branches are damaged, breaking, or cracking from the increasing weight of the ripening fruit.
- When removing spent roses, be sure to cut the flowers off close to a leaf bud. When you leave too much of the stem, it will die naturally, leaving black tips.
- It's not too hot to sow another crop of radishes and beets, especially to replace those that have gone to seed or bolted. A three-foot by one-foot rectangular planter is ideal for root crops. When the temperature soars, they can also be moved out of the heat of the day sun.