What to do in the garden this week, what is ripe, and the weather that will decide both.
The growing week
This week: slight chance light rain, highs around 94°F and lows around 50°F.
Rain is in the forecast — ease off irrigation and hold off on spraying.
In the garden now
The autumn garden goes in as the day length starts to drop
Count your autumn planting dates backwards from 18 November. Add a week or two to the days-to-maturity on the packet: autumn days are shortening and cooling, not lengthening. UC Master Gardeners of Sonoma County
Cut spent summer crops off below the soil line rather than pulling them. Leaving the roots preserves the soil's biology. Compost only what is free of pest and disease. UC Master Gardeners of Sonoma County
The rest of the month, and the whole year, is in the garden calendar.
At the farm stands
In August, look for tomatoes, peaches, plums, corn, peppers, eggplant, melons, figs, blackberries, and the first table grapes.
Garden tasks come from the UC Master Gardener Program of Sonoma County and UC Integrated Pest Management, each linked to its source. Growing weather is from the National Weather Service. Your own microclimate — valley floor or hillside — will vary.