If you polled gardeners as to their favorite month, many would vote for August. Not only is the weather pleasant, but almost everything in the garden is ready to harvest, and most of the gardening chores are now behind you. And it's not too late to put in second plantings of some crops like lettuce, peas, and kale, provided you do it in early August and keep the planting well watered.

Other activities for August: fertilize lawns and reseed bare spots; take cuttings from tender perennials and annuals, such as geraniums and coleus, that you want to overwinter; plant a cover crop, if the garden is done producing for the season.