August Yard & Garden Tips: Stay Ahead of Pests, Prune with Purpose, and Prep for Fall

As summer winds down and thoughts of fall begin to creep in, August is a critical month for gardeners and homeowners to stay proactive. From managing pests in your lawn and garden to planning ahead for cooler weather, the Clemson Cooperative Extension offers helpful advice to keep your yard healthy and beautiful through the end of the season.

Whether you’re fighting off chinch bugs in your grass, pruning your shrubs, or preparing to plant a fall crop of collards and snap beans, these timely tips from the experts at Clemson Extension are a great way to make the most of your yard and garden in August.

Visit Clemson Extension – Laurens County for full details and links to additional resources.

Watch Out For:

Lawns

• Lawn diseases – Be on the lookout for brown patch and dollar spot, especially if your lawn had issues last year.

• Chinch bugs – Inspect warm-season grasses.

• White grubs – Bacillus thuringiensis is effective against Japanese beetle grubs.

• Mole crickets – Early August is your last chance for effective control.

• Spittlebugs – Common in warm-season lawns and on hollies.

Trees and Shrubs

• Bagworms – Inspect evergreens and broadleaf trees. Hand-pick or treat with Bacillus thuringiensis.

• Oakworms – These pests can defoliate small oaks quickly. Spot-treat lower branches with carbaryl or Bacillus thuringiensis.

• Webworms – Expect to see these in pecan trees by mid- to late August. Control the lower third with a liquid spray.

Vegetables

• Insects – Watch for cucumber beetles and squash vine borers.

• Blossom end rot – Look for dark spots on tomato bottoms. Add gypsum to the soil or use foliar sprays. Remove affected fruit.

Things To Do This Month:

Fruits

• Spray fruit trees – Continue fungicide applications every 7–10 days. Avoid insecticides until after bloom drop.

Lawns

• Fertilize – Apply complete fertilizer to warm-season grasses.

• Fire ants – Apply fresh bait this month during optimal foraging temperatures.

• Aeration – Aerate cool-season lawns like fescue. Save warm-season lawn aeration for spring/summer.

• Irrigation – One inch of water per week (rain included) is standard—up to two inches for sweet corn and squash.

Trees and Shrubs

• Pruning – Now is the time to prune azaleas, dogwoods, and more—after bloom, before fall set.

• Planning – Start thinking about what trees/shrubs to plant this fall.

• Pecan weevils – Begin treatments the first week of August. Weekly applications for six weeks are necessary.

Vegetables

• Garden clean-up – Remove tomato plants once production ends to prevent disease.

• Make a note – Sketch this year’s garden layout to plan crop rotation next spring.

• Planting –

  • Collards: through Aug. 30

  • Snap beans & Half-runners: Aug. 1–15

  • Lettuce: Aug. 15–25

All resources and detailed guides referenced above can be found at Clemson Home & Garden Information Center (HGIC).

Stay cool, stay vigilant, and enjoy your August gardening!