Keep things simple in the garden this August

August can be seedy, weedy, let-your-hair-down time. The roses are over, people go away and gardens are left on the back burner. According to the NGS Yellow Book only 10 gardens open in my county this month, but more than three times that number were open in June.

Some of us keep the show going with half hardies and tender plants. I grow plenty of salvias, dahlias and cosmos in the summer garden. But it is hard work. Perennials would be much easier, and the book Late Summer Flowers by Marina Christopher of Phoenix Perennial Plants in Hampshire, contains a wide choice of perennials for the dog days (recently reissued in paperback by Frances Lincoln, £16.99).

Modern European gardeners have known for years that there are stunning grasses and flowers for late summer. Most Oudolf-inspired borders do not get into their stride until late July.

Christopher thinks it is hard to make all-year borders work and it may be better to dedicate a bed to late summer – preferably backlit by the setting sun.

An advantage of separating early and late summer is that colours are easier to manage. As the crimsons, pinks and blues of summer fade, they can be replaced by the tawny shades of autumn in a different corner of the garden. Only a huge border could contain enough permanent clumps for both seasons to make an impact.