The August To-Do List

It's almost mid-August. Your gardens are tired of working for you all summer. You're probably tired, too. You can feel the season slowly changing ... The air smells a little different ... The days are oh-so-gradually getting shorter again ... Did you just see a leaf fall on the ground?

Hey!
Snap out of it!

Don't be fooled by back-to-school ridiculousness and promises of a new fall wardrobe. (As enticing as those new suede boots might be, they'll still be there in October, I promise.)

Summer is still here, and my calendar says it will stay here until September 23.
If you think your work is done, you're sorely mistaken.
So, grab your shovel and your bypass pruners because your to-do list just got a little longer.

From mulching to compost, bulbs to saving seeds, deadheading to weeding, there's still plenty to do this year and in preparation for next spring. There's even time to plant a late harvest garden. Take it from the experts, About.com and Better Homes and Gardens have compiled some great August tips to keep your garden going through September and beyond.

I think I'm even crazy enough to try a fall container garden this year...yeah, even after I got on my soapbox about containers.

The Year of the Zinnia

Apparently 2011 is the year of the Rabbit, Google+ and the Zinnia!

Each year, the professional horticulture industry comes together to showcase one flower (and one vegetable!) of the year, based on popularity, ease, adaptability, versatility and diversity. This year, it's the Zinnia, which perfectly fits all of the defined categories and more. So, what's to love?

• Great in borders, beds, containers, cutting gardens, you name it. 
• Known as the "cut and come again" flower. Some varieties are prolific enough to be a ground cover.  
• Heights vary from 8 inches up to 4 feet, giving you options that are short, tall and everything in between.
• Easy to sow from seed.
• Sun loving, fast growing and super low maintenance, just the way I like 'em!
• Like color? Available in yellow, orange, cherry, pink, purple, scarlet, white, as well as fashionable chartreuse (my personal fave).
• Practically pest free.

There really isn't anything not to love about Zinnias. Ironically, this is the first year that I haven't used Zinnias in my gardens. Regrets!

Random fact: When the Spanish first saw the Zinnia species in Mexico, they thought the flower was so unattractive they named it mal de ojos or "sickness of the eye!" 

For more horticulture history, recommendations and how to grow from seed, check out the Year of the Zinnia page on the National Gardening Association site. (P.S. For all of you vegetable gardeners, 2011 is also the Year of the Tomato, chosen by the NGA.)

Zinnia Giant Double Mix-Pink

 Zinnia Giant Double Mix-Pink, close up so you can see "the eye!"

Zinnia Profusion 5 Color Mix, I've used these in containers and beds before, they spread like crazy and keep until hard fall frost (and then some!)

Zinnia Queen Lime, I totally have a thing for green flowers right now.

All content and photos provided by the National Garden Bureau via the National Gardening Association. 

Great Finds: Vintage Garden Decor

The best finds are always the ones you weren't even looking for.
With a quick weekend stop to your local antique boutique, neighbor's garage sale, or if you fancy, a dumpster dive, you can find a variety vintage items that are both practical and inventive in the garden.

I'm not talking about gazing balls and garden gnomes. Think rustic, yet elegant pieces that can be repurposed to make creative containers, plant stands, window boxes, trellises, garden markers and more. Be on the lookout for items such as old bedframes, ladders, watering cans and pitchers, and my personal favorite, simple aluminum buckets.

Now, I haven't quite gotten into herb and vegetable gardening (yet), but stumbling upon these vintage garden markers from Anthropologie makes me want to start.

At the very least, I'm now intrigued at the idea of treasure hunting for antique silverware and making my own garden markers.

Silverware photo credit: Anthropologie.com.