Stagger planting of gladiolus to extend blooms

The gladiolus produces a large, showy flower spike that lasts for several days, whether in the garden or in a vase. To get the most out of a bloom for decoration inside, cut when the lowest blossoms have begun to show color.

Place the cut stem in water as quickly as you can. Stagger the planting of gladioli to provide flowers over a longer period of time.

• If the new growth at the tips of your Scots or Austrian pine's branches has turned brown, a disease called Diplodia tip blight may be the problem. It is too late to spray fungicides now, as infection occurs in the spring. Prune out dead tips in dry weather to reduce the spread of infection and dispose on the debris in the garbage. Disinfect pruners in between plants when pruning out diseased branches. I use Lysol disinfectant.

• In early August, plant short-season snap beans, broccoli, cabbages, cauliflower, carrots, mustard greens, spinach and radishes for fall harvesting.

• Continue to harvest herbs by either snipping foliage, drying entire sprigs or plants, or freezing individual portions in ice-cube trays. Pinch off developing flowers to retain essential oils and flavor in the plants' foliage.

• If the plants growing in your containers or baskets are looking stunted or have leaves that are yellowing, then they may need supplemental fertilizer. The frequent watering required for containers and baskets can leach nutrients out of the growing medium. Use a liquid fertilizer as needed to perk them up.

It is best to fertilize the containers and baskets when the plants are moist and not dry. Fertilizing plants that are very dry can result in damage to the plants' roots.

Annuals growing in garden beds may also benefit from fertilizer if they are stunted and off color in growth, providing that other potential cultural problems like over- or under watering can be ruled out. Over fertilizing will result in large green plants with reduced flowering.

• Continue monitoring your garden for plant damage if you have experienced flooding during recent storms. If unsure whether a plant is going to survive, then give it more time to recover. Some lawn areas at the Garden that were underwater for more than five days are continuing to brown out so will most likely need to be reseeded. There are no signs of growth yet.

• Tim Johnson is director of horticulture at Chicago Botanic Garden, chicagobotanic.org.