Pick up any camelia petals and blossoms that have fallen on the ground to prevent petal blight in the future. After camelias have finished blooming, it's time to fertilize. (Photo: Jeannette Warnert)

Tasks

• Inspect trees for die-back and weak limbs, which are common in drought-stressed plants, and remove them before they become a safety hazard.
• Leave frost-damaged growth on tender plants as protection until the danger of frost is past. Begin pruning as new growth emerges.
• Keep fallen camellia petals picked up to avoid petal blight.

Pruning

• Finish deciduous pruning. Chip debris for mulch.
• Wait to prune spring-flowering shrubs until after they bloom.
• Cut back scented geraniums to 18 inches.

Fertilizing

• Fertilize blooming ornamentals such as camellias and azaleas that have finished blooming.
• Fertilize cool-season lawns late in the month if fall fertilization was missed.

Planting

• Add permanent plantings of non-deciduous and needle evergreens.
• Annuals: fibrous begonia, twinspur (Diascia).
• Bulbs, corms, tubers: autumn crocus.
• Fruits and vegetables: cabbage, lemon grass (Cymbopogon).
• Perennials: Red-Hot Poker (Kniphofia), wallflower (Erysimum), blanket flower (Gaillardia).
• Trees, shrubs, vines: bird of paradise bush (Caesalpinia), beautyberry (Callicarpa), bottlebrush (Callistemon).

Enjoy now

• Annuals and perennials: calendula, larkspur (Consolida).
• Bulbs, corms, tubers: daffodil, iris.
• Trees, shrubs, vines: dogwood (Cornus), forsythia, lemon.
• Fruits and vegetables: chives, fennel, kohlrabi, leek.

Things to ponder

• Water may be scarce again this summer. Limit new plantings of annuals and bedding plants, and consider converting part of your landscape watering system to drip irrigation.