July
Week 1 -
Irrigate lawns only when grass blades first show signs of wilting in the morning. Apply 1/2-inch to 5/8-inch of water on each of two consecutive mornings to encourage deeper roots in our clay soils. If you water once a week during a prolonged drought (as the municipal water monopolies recommend), you'll promote shallow roots.

Cut back and discard foliage of west Texas Columbines. Do not compost leaves infested with leaf miners or spider mites.

Still time to sow Okra for summer and early fall production.

Week 2 -
Eradicate web worms when their nests are small. Use a product containing "Bt" (Bacillus thuringiensis).

Make sure your sprinkler system is not skipping a station or provides inadequate coverage.

Remove and discard all fruits from Catalpa, Paulownia and Trumpet Vine.

Protect ripening Figs, Grapes and Pomegranates from bird damage with netting, inflatable snakes, attack cats, owls, etc.

Week 3 -
Don't enrich your municipal water monopoly. Water most plants deeply on the day before they would have wilted.

Plant Asters, Firebush, perennial garden Mums, Salvias, etc. for fall bloom in sunny sites.

Water shady beds of English and Algerian Ivy only when their leaves first start to wilt.

Transplant: Eggplant, Peppers (both hot and sweet) and Tomatoes into prepared fall garden beds, in the evening. Keep them moist for two weeks.

Week 4 -
This is a good time for pruning Live Oaks and Red Oaks. Use a tree-wound dressing if you live near sites with Oak Wilt.

The driest time of the year is the best time to paint and reseal wooden outdoor furniture, decks and fences.

Feed Waterlilies with additional Agriform 2-year fertilizer tablets. Place them where fish or frogs cannot unearth them.

A black sooty mold on leaves is evidence of sucking bugs excreting honeydew. Kill those suckers with the least toxic, yet effective insecticide.

August
Week 1-
It is normal for Live Oaks, Loquats and Magnolias to be dropping some leaves when it is hot & dry.

Feed clumping bamboos with slow-release, 15-5-10 lawn food and water regularly during their summer growing period.

Make sure your sprinkler system does not water the street, sidewalks or driveways.

Fertilize summer-blooming perennials lightly with 15-5-10. They will need water afterwards.

Finish transplanting Tomatoes, Peppers and Eggplant for fall production.

Even cacti and succulents in the landscape need to be watered if it is dry.

Try to work in the garden between 6:00 AM and 9:00 AM. Drink at least one glass of water (not carbonated or caffeine- or alcohol-containing products) each hour while working.

Week 2 -
Cut back Poinsettias and pinch back the subsequent growth once.

Pinch shoot tips on Mums and Asters.

It isn't just drought-stress, chinch bugs could be damaging your turf.

Don't let your fall vegetable transplants wilt; keep them watered and growing vigorously.

Use your oak leaf compost as a mulch around shrubs or vegetables.

Build raised beds, in full sun, of acidic materials (decayed granite, glauconite (green sand), red sand and pine bark soil conditioners) for Strawberries.

Keep Chayote and Luffa vines well-fed and healthy. They'll start blooming in a few weeks.

Week 3 -
Begin minimal pruning of Hybrid Tea Roses. Feed with a slow-release fertilizer.

Finish sowing: Bush Lima Beans, Sweet Corn, Cucumber and Winter Squash.

Order wildflower seeds and sow as soon as they arrive.

Even if you see Pansies offered for sale, please resist. They should not be planted until mid-October.

Transplant: Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower and Potato.

Languishing spring-blooming perennials may be cut back and divided. Replant immediately and water them deeply.

Remove fire-blight-affected branches from Cotoneaster, India Hawthorn, Pear, Photinia and Pyracantha. Sterilize pruners between each cut in a chlorine bleach & water solution.

Week 4 -
The optimal FALL PLANTING SEASON starts in three weeks!

Sow: Cucumbers and Summer Squash.

Finish summer pruning of Oak-Wilt-susceptible Live Oaks and Red Oaks.

Remove some of the barren branches from female hollies so berries will be more prominent when they turn red.

Nurserymen are now returning from their huge, annual trade show. Look for new products and plants in the next few weeks.

Start sowing flowering winter annuals, such as: Allysum, Calendula, Larkspur, Poppy and Stocks.