by Janis on 4th September 2026 / 0 comments
Yay, the rain has finally arrived
Yes, we had to wait until the end of August, but the rain has finally arrived. South East Water warned us that we are now in drought conditions, and we may have to limit our water supply even further across the county, but let’s all hope we’re over the worst
It is so lovely to see the rain again and even better when it decides to have a downpour overnight.
So, as you can imagine as the ground has been rock hard not a lot of things have been done around the garden.
However, although the gardening may have been quiet, we’ve been busy planning our road trip around Scotland. We head off from Kent for two weeks in early September and cover around 2,500 miles in our EV.
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Delicate Achillea blooms
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A splash of colour
What we’ve been up to in August
In the garden and on the websiteThe garden has looked very sad these last couple of months; we haven’t had any decent rain since May, and all the beautiful flowers and plants that are normally in bloom through July and August have barely grown, let alone blossom.
Last flower on a Hollyhock
I have been looking at the photos we took this time last year and from previous Augusts, and you wouldn’t believe how much vibrant colour is missing. Sadly, I think this may become something we will expect for years to come.
Luckily, irrigation systems are exempt from the hosepipe ban, so our patio pots are looking colourful, which truly makes a difference.
The main things that we have done this month in the garden are pruning. Our bay and holly shrubs have needed a haircut for a while, so we got the hedge trimmer out and gave them a prune along with a few other bushes.
Chillies not performing
Our chilli plants are not performing at all this year. We have tried new varieties, and I was slightly late sowing them, but they are just not growing. I’ve potted them on from their seedling stage, but I didn’t want to put them in a pot that is too large.
A couple have started producing flowers, but there are still no signs of chillies; luckily, we still have some in the freezer from last year.
Achievements for August
Let’s keep ticking those boxesWe've managed to tick a few jobs off the list for August; however, we would have liked to achieve more.
Dried poppy heads
So, let’s see what we’ve managed to tick off for August.
Tied up the tomato plants and trimmed where necessary.
Pruned our holly and bay shrubs.
Pruned and tidied our rambling roses, passion flower and honeysuckle.
Tidied the front garden.
Keep the garden waste bin as full as possible.
Lessons learnt & mistakes made
You live and learnThis isn't really a lesson learnt; however, I highly recommend investing in an irrigation system with a timer. As the system drip-feeds the plants, they are also exempt under most water companies' hosepipe bans.
The timer makes life so much easier; we set it for the morning and evening for 30 minutes, and your flowers bloom.
Our plans for the coming month
What’s on your to-do list?Keep an eye on my chilli plants; fingers crossed we may see some fruit.
Clear and chop up our fallen tree.
Weed the remainder of the driveway using a scraper.
Continue clearing weeds and unwanted plants in the Cottage Garden section.
Prune more of the many shrubs in the back garden and check the pruning seasons.
Replant the Alpine Garden.
Clear more of the old, raised beds.
Please let us know what you have planned for your garden this month; we’d love to hear about it.
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