Text Box: they will stimulate growth too quickly. Grasses will benefit from infrequent and very thorough watering, especially during hot, dry periods. A good soak once a week will keep them happy. Grasses should be mulched to help conserve water and prevent weed growth. The mulch will also release important nutrients for the grasses. The tall stalks on grasses provide winter interest in the landscape, but if they become unsightly can be trimmed back at any time. The grasses should be cut back just before or as soon as new growth appears in spring. Visit the perennial department at Nursery Services for a full selection of beautiful grasses for both sun and shade. You will love these low-maintenance, high impact additions to your landscape! Text Box: August Newsletter Text Box: Monthly To-Do List · Assess areas in the garden that may need additional planting · Prepare a landscape plan for fall planting of trees and shrubs · Spot seed to renovate existing lawn · De-thatch and aerate existing lawn to promote root growth · Continue to deadhead annuals and perennials to encourage continuous bloom · Plant broad-leaved and needle-leaved evergreens from late August-October · Prune summer flowering trees and shrubs after flowering is complete · Lightly prune overgrown hedges and deciduous shrubs · Fertilize roses to encourage last new growth before frost Feature Article: Ornamental Grasses The unique shapes, sizes, Text Box: textures, and sounds of ornamental grasses bring great interest and beauty to the natural landscape. There are cool-season and warm-season ornamental grasses, so we recommend balancing your selections in order to provide year-round interest. Cool-season types, such as blue fescue(Festuca glauca) are at their best in spring and fall and can go dormant during droughts. Their centers die out after a few years and therefore require more frequent division. Warm season grasses tend to be the larger(6-10’) and more impressive varieties, including Miscanthus, Cortaderia, and Panicum. These grasses are drought-tolerant and perform best when temperatures are high. They bloom in late summer and hold flowers throughout the winter. Grasses have the same basic requirements as other plants in your garden: appropriate light, well-drained soil, adequate water supply, and periodic trimming. Amendments and fertilizers are not usually necessary as Text Box: Nursery Services Inc. Text Box: Tree of the Month: Betula Nigra: River Birch – 40-70’ height. Salmon-brown exfoliating bark, nice specimen. Shrub of the Month: Clethra alnifolia ‘Ruby Spice’: Ruby Spice Summersweet – 5-6’ height. Lustrous dark green foliage, deep pink, non-fading flowers, fragrant. Perennial of the Month: Geranium ‘Rozanne’: Cranesbill Geranium. 20” height x 24” wide. Violet blue flowers from June to frost. Heat tolerant. Red fall foliage. Quote: Half the interest of a garden is the constant exercise of the imagination. ~Mrs. C.W. Earle You can look forward to learning more about “Fall Color in the Landscape” in our September issue!