August is the month to fertilize roses, dahlias, flowering containers, tomatoes, peppers, and any plant still actively making flowers or fruit. Use a diluted liquid feed or low-nitrogen, high-potassium fertilizer after watering, but stop feeding shrubs, trees, and perennials that are slowing down for fall - late, soft growth is no favor before winter.
The goal is not to turn the back yard into a botanical boot camp. It is simply to support the plants still working their little socks off during the hottest, hungriest stretch of the season.
