Skip to content

Gardening in August

Practical gardening advice for British gardens.

Find out what to plant, prune and fix this week. Every guide is written for UK soil, weather and growing seasons.

Semi-Ripe Cuttings: The Bend Test That Times It
Seasonal pick Semi-Ripe Cuttings: The Bend Test That Times It

1423+ practical UK guides

30+ years gardening experience

Staffordshire clay-soil trials

How we test our advice

Start here

Your garden this weekend.

Three timely jobs, matched to the season and the latest UK forecast.

This weekend

Sat -- -- Sun -- -- -- --
A diagnostic close-up of UK stone fruit showing brown rot (Monilinia) on a ripe plum

Featured guide

Brown Rot UK: Stone Fruit Control Guide

Brown rot on UK stone fruit: identify Monilinia laxa and fructigena, sanitation, pruning for airflow, copper sprays and the disposal of mummified fruit.

Read the featured guide

Garden UK directory

Find someone local to get the job done.

Browse genuine UK garden businesses by service and location. Contact them directly when you are ready.

Testing soil pH with a digital meter in a British garden Testing soil amendments in Staffordshire

Advice grounded here

Written from experience, not rewritten from elsewhere.

The Garden UK Editorial Team produces practical advice for British conditions, overseen by Editorial Director Matt W.

Garden UK guides explain what was tried, when it was done and what happened next. That means fewer vague tips and more useful detail for British gardens.

Meet the team and see how we work

New on Garden UK

Latest guides.

1441 guides and recipes, newest first.

Greater plantain with broad ribbed leaves and narrow flower spikes in a worn UK lawn
Guide · problems

Greater Plantain in Lawns: Fix the Cause

Greater plantain survives mowing and favours worn turf. Identify it, remove the crown, and repair the compaction beneath your lawn.

Open page
Hairy bittercress Cardamine hirsuta with a small rosette, tiny white flowers and slender seed pods in a pot
Guide · problems

Hairy Bittercress: The Exploding Weed

Hairy bittercress fires seeds across nearby pots. Identify this fast weed, control it before pods explode, and use clean leaves as peppery cress.

Open page
Common ragwort Jacobaea vulgaris with flat-topped clusters of bright yellow flowers in a UK field
Guide · problems

Ragwort: Identify and Remove It Safely

Ragwort is toxic to grazing animals but valuable for wildlife. Identify it, remove it safely before seed, and understand the law.

Open page
Broad-leaved dock Rumex obtusifolius with large oval leaves and a rusty-red seed spike in a UK garden
Guide · problems

Broad-Leaved Dock: Control and Uses

Broad-leaved dock has a deep tap root and seeds that last decades. How to dig it out properly, stop it seeding, and use it on nettle stings.

Open page
Creeping thistle Cirsium arvense with lilac-purple flower heads and spiny leaves in a UK garden
Guide · problems

Creeping Thistle: Identify and Control

Creeping thistle spreads by brittle roots and wind-blown seed. Identify it, control it by cutting before it seeds, and know the legal duty.

Open page
White frothy cuckoo spit on a lavender stem in a UK garden made by a froghopper nymph
Guide · wildlife

Cuckoo Spit: What the White Froth Is

That white froth on your lavender is cuckoo spit, made by a harmless froghopper nymph. What it is, why it is nothing to fear, and when to note it.

Open page
Harlequin ladybird Harmonia axyridis on a leaf showing orange wing cases with many black spots
Guide · wildlife

Harlequin Ladybird vs Native Ladybirds

The harlequin ladybird is an invasive species threatening our natives. Tell it from the 7-spot by its size, brown legs and the black M on the pronotum.

Open page
Bright green shield bug Palomena prasina resting on a green leaf in a UK garden close up
Guide · wildlife

Green Shield Bug: Friend or Foe?

That bright green shield bug on your beans is almost certainly a harmless native. How to tell it from the invasive southern green stink bug.

Open page
Tulips distorted and scorched with brown spots and grey mould from tulip fire in a UK spring border
Guide · problems

Tulip Fire: Spot and Beat Botrytis

Tulip fire scorches, twists and spots tulips each spring. Spot the grey-mould primaries, rogue them out fast, and break the cycle with a three-year gap.

Open page
Gooseberry bush with white powdery American gooseberry mildew coating the shoot tips and berries in a UK garden
Guide · problems

American Gooseberry Mildew: Stop the Felt

American gooseberry mildew coats shoots and berries in white felt. Beat it with open pruning, less nitrogen and resistant varieties like Invicta.

Open page
Allotment potato rows with foliage collapsing from potato blight under a humid grey UK sky
Guide · problems

Potato Blight: Stop It Before It Spreads

Potato blight can strip an allotment in a week. Use blight alerts, the earlies-escape trick, haulm cutting and Sarpo varieties to save your crop.

Open page
Amber gum oozing from a sunken bacterial canker lesion on the bark of a UK cherry tree
Guide · problems

Bacterial Canker on Cherry and Plum Trees

Bacterial canker on cherry and plum trees: spot the amber gum and shot-hole, prune at the right time, and choose resistant Prunus for UK gardens.

Open page
A sunlit UK border of bearded iris in full flower in shades of purple, blue and yellow
Guide · plants

How to Grow Bearded Iris in the UK

How to grow bearded iris in UK gardens: plant rhizomes half-exposed, bake them in full sun, and divide every three years for reliable summer flowers.

Open page
Fan-trained peach against a brick wall showing red blistered curled leaves from peach leaf curl in spring
Guide · problems

Peach Leaf Curl: Prevent and Cure It

Peach leaf curl blisters and reddens new peach leaves each spring. Learn why a rain shelter beats every spray and the resistant variety that dodges it.

Open page
Rose leaves showing bright orange rust pustules on the undersides in a UK garden border
Guide · problems

Rose Rust: Spot It Early and Stop It

Rose rust brings bright orange pustules under the leaves from May. Tell it from black spot and break the cycle with autumn leaf clearance and potash.

Open page

Showing 15 of 1441

Free monthly newsletter

Know what to do, and when to do it.

Get the month's planting jobs, timely warnings and a printable UK planting calendar.

One useful email each month. Unsubscribe whenever you like. Read our privacy policy.