August on the mid-north coast is a sweet spot - winter is mostly behind us, and (except for some welcome chilly mornings), the warmth is starting to creep back in day by day. Anticipation is building!
It's not quite spring planting time yet, but it absolutely is preparation time. Do the work now and your spring garden will reward you. Leave it too late and you'll be scrambling.
Here are 3 suggestions on what to focus on right now.
Make Space First — Before you can plant spring crops, you need to clear what's spent. Pull your tired winter crops, get on top of weeds before they set seed, and give your beds room to breathe. A cluttered garden struggles to perform.
Feed Your Soil, Not Just Your Plants — Garden soils love a generous feed of compost worked in now, some weeks before planting. This is where your summer harvest can be won or lost - not in October, but now in August. Feed the soil microbiome even before it wakes up. Add a quality organic fertiliser and, if your beds are compacted, break them up by forking. Healthy soil structure matters more than almost anything else.
Start Your Summer Seedlings Under Cover — Tomatoes, capsicums, cucumbers, zucchini, etc. all need a head start. Sow them now in trays somewhere sheltered and warm. Wait until September to seed, and you'll be six weeks behind where you could be.
Bonus tip: build in some rest before the rush. Our busiest time of year in the garden is just around the corner, and like darkness precedes each day, a short rest before the long days start makes all the difference.
Happy gardening!