August in Seattle

From top to bottom: summer squash, cherry tomato, purple broccoli, sunflower & chard.  These are all good choices for Seattle gardens.  Very large tomatoes ripen late in the season, if at all.  Cherry tomatoes produce much earlier.  Chard was bountiful this year.  All photos were taken at the Rainier Vista Sunrise Garden.

August 2014 in Seattle was significantly warmer & wetter than usual.  The mean temperature was 69.1F/20.6C, a full 3 degrees higher than normal.  Total precipitation was 1.81 inches/45.97mm, 0.93 inches/23.62mm more than normal.  The highest temperature was 96F/35.6C on 8/11, the lowest 52F/11.1C on 8/21.  There were 3 days with rain, 10 days with light rain, 1 day with hail, 9 days with fog (2 with visibility at less than 1/4 mile) 7 cloudy days, 14 partly cloudy days & 10 fair days.  The good thing about August 2014 was that there were only 5 days over 85F/29.4C degrees.  The extra rain helped keep the landscape green & lush.  Things usually begin to turn brown in August.   

July in Seattle

These Capitol Hill homes were built around 1910.  They are called Seattle boxes, or foursquare houses.

Hydrangea macrophylla

 Allium by the alley.  The photos above were taken on Capitol Hill in July 2014.

Mostly roses & Hydrangea macrophylla at this dutch colonial house in University Park, built around 1920.

July 2014 in Seattle was significantly warmer & slightly wetter than normal. The mean temperature was 69.2F/20.7C.  The normal mean temperature is 65.7F/18.7C.  Total precipitation was 0.77 inches/19.6mm, 0.76 inches/19.3mm fell on 7/23.  Normal precipitation is 0.70 inches/17.8mm.  The highest temperature was 94F/34.4C on 7/1.  The lowest was 53F/11.7C on 7/18.  There were 10 days at 85F/29.4C or above, which is hot for Seattle.  There was 1 day with heavy rain, 1 day with rain, 3 days with light rain, 7 days with fog (1 with visibility at less than 1/4 mile) 6 cloudy days, 11 partly cloudy days & 14 fair days.       
 

September in Seattle

Brighton in September 2013
 

Chrysanthemum & Dahlia in Columbia City in September 2013 

Downtown Seattle on 5th Avenue in September 2013

Saint James Cathedral on 1st Hill in September 2013

 

 Pseudotsuga menziesii (Douglas Fir) along Lake Washington in Seward Park in September 2013

September 2013 in Seattle was warmer & much wetter than normal. The mean temperature was 63.2F/17.3C.  The normal mean temperature is 61.6F/16.4C.  The highest temperature was 93F/33.9C, the lowest 45F/7.2C.  Total precipitation was 5.01 inches/127.25mm, which set a record for the month of September.  Normal precipitation is 1.52 inches/38.61mm.  The previous record was 2.9 inches/73.66mm in 2010.  There were 3 days with heavy rain, 4 days with rain, 18 days with light rain, 9 days with fog, 7 cloudy days, 20 partly cloudy days & 3 fair days.  The high temperature of 93F/33.9C on 9/11 was a shock after a summer with very few hot days.  It was 80F/26.7C the day before & 78F/25.6C the day after.  The heavy rain (3.1 inches/78.74mm) that fell 9/28-30 was also a surprise.  So much rain in just a few days usually happens only in winter.

August in Seattle

Beacon Hill in August 2013. A myriad of plants, both native & exotic, thrive in Seattle.  Yet many home landscapes are little more than lawn left to brown in the perennial summer drought.

Seattle Central Community College on Capitol Hill in August 2013. This building opened in 1970.  Tracks are being laid for the First Hill Streetcar.

Oddfellows Building on Capitol Hill in August 2013.  Built in 1908, this building contains a collection of retail spaces, offices & creative users.  Perhaps the best known is the Century Ballroom.  This part of the hill, the Pike/Pine corridor, has been recently revitalized with new shops, housing, bars & restaurants.

Alcea rosea (Common Hollyhock) in NewHolly in August 2013

Hydrangea macrophylla & Fuchsia magellenica in West Seattle in August 2013

August in Seattle was warmer & wetter than normal.  The mean temperature was 69.4F/20.8C.  The normal mean temperature is 66.1F/18.9C.  Total precipitation was 1.35 inches/ 34.29mm.  Normal precipitation is 0.88 inches/ 22.35mm.  The highest temperature was 88F/31.1C, the lowest 56F/13.3C.  There was 1 day with heavy rain, 4 days with rain, 12 days with light rain, 1 day with fog, 5 days with haze, 10 cloudy days, 14 partly cloudy days & 7 fair days.  It was about as pleasant as August can be.

July in Seattle

Lavandula angustifolia (English Lavender) in Columbia City. July 2013

Downtown Seattle. July 2013

Capitol Hill with Queen Anne Hill in the distance. July 2013

Cal Anderson Park on Capitol Hill. This park covers a reservoir near Broadway Avenue E & E Pike Street, the two largest commercial centers on the hill. The crane & red wall mark the construction site of the Capitol Hill Station for light rail trains.  The water feature illustrates the flow of the municipal water supply from the Cascade Mountains to the city.  July 2013

Lilium martagon at Seattle University. This Jesuit university is a beautifully landscaped space on the east slope of 1st Hill. July 2013

July 2013 in Seattle was warmer & drier than normal.  The mean temperature was 68.1F/20.1C.  The normal mean temperature is 65.7F/18.7C.  There was no measurable rain.  Normal precipitation is 0.7 inches/17.8 mm.  The highest temperature was 89F/31.7C, the lowest 52F/11.1C.  There were 2 days with light rain, 15 days with fog, 2 cloudy days, 16 partly cloudy days & 13 fair days.  The days were mostly warm or hot, sometimes with morning fog.  There were 23 days at 75F/23.9C or above, 7 days at 85F/29.4C or above.  July is typically warm & dry in Seattle.

September Garden Pictures

Echinops ritro September 2012

Hydrangea arborescens September 2012

Paeonia suffruticosa September 2012

Sorbus forrestii September 2012

Pieris japonica 'Variegata' September 2012

September 2012 in Seattle was warmer & much drier than normal.  The mean temperature was 62.7F/17.1C.  The normal mean temperature is 61.3F/16.3C.  Total precipitation was 0.03 inches.  Normal precipitation is 1.5 inches.  The highest temperature was 90F/32.2C, the lowest 46F/7.8C.  There were 5 days with light rain, 9 days with fog, 4 days with haze, 4 cloudy days, 11 partly cloudy days & 15 fair days.  This followed an August that was also warmer than normal & with no measurable precipitation.  The last significant rain fell on July 20.  The landscape became very dry & dusty.  Air quality was poor.  Numerous wildfires were reported in the the State of Washington, east of the Cascade Mountains.

The Wildlife News reported on September 23, 'The immediate cause of the fires is ignition and plenty of dry fuel, but the dryness itself after June is explained by a persistent and huge ridge in the polar jet stream over the Western United States.  This has kept all but thunderstorms at bay in the West, but pushed storm after storm over SE and Central Alaska, causing record summer flooding up there. Changes in the jet stream are one of the things that you would predict with the Arctic Ocean melting as it has. There is no longer the temperature differences between the polar side and southern side of the jet to keep it relatively tight and symmetrical.  The result is the development of huge and persistent troughs in the jet stream carrying strong rainstorms coupled with equally large and scantly moving ridges of dry, dry weather. With the Arctic melt, the current situation of extremes might be irreversible.'

August Garden Pictures

Anemone x hybrida August 2012

Asclepias speciosa August 2012

 
Calluna vulgaris 'Wickwar Flame', Hebe x pimeleoides 'Quicksilver' & Pratia pedunculata August 2012

Eryngium planum & Sedum selskianum August 2012

Eucomis comosa 'Can Can' & Lilium 'Black Beauty' August 2012

August 2012 in Seattle was warmer than normal & very dry. The mean temperature was 67.9F/19.9C.  The normal mean temperature is 66.1F/18.9C.  There was only a trace of rain on 2 days, no measurable amount.  Normal precipitation is 0.88 inches.  The highest temperature was 94F/34.4C, the lowest 50F/10C.  There were 11 days over 80F/26.7C, 4 of them over 90F/32.2C.  The record high temperature for Seattle in August is 99F/37.2C.   There were 3 days with fog, 3 days with haze, 5 cloudy days, 14 partly cloudy days & 12 fair days.  It was dry & increasingly dusty.  A few very hot days alternated with a few cooler days with highs of 70F/21.1C on 3 days.  Irrigation was essential.  Watering the potted plants was a major chore.  I did very little work in the garden because it was mostly too sunny & warm.

July Garden Pictures

Hebe recurva July 2012

Hydrangea paniculata July 2012

Ligularia stenocephala 'The Rocket' July 2012

Nigella damascena 'Alba' July 2012

Rubus idaeus July 2012

July 2012 was cooler & wetter than normal.  This followed a June that was very cool & wet.  In fact, the year to date has been quite wet.  As of July 31, total precipitation was 26.4 inches.  Normal precipitation to this date is 19.8 inches.  Plants continued to grow larger than normal.  It was not necessary to irrigate until the end of the month.  The mean temperature was 64.3F/17.9C.  The normal mean temperature is 65.7F/18.7C.  Total precipitation was 1.04 inches.  Normal precipitation is 0.7 inches.  The highest temperature was 83F/28.3C, the lowest 49F/9.4C.  There were 2 days with heavy rain, 2 days with rain, 12 days with light rain, 11 days with fog, 6 days with haze, 10 partly cloudy days, 13 cloudy days & 8 fair days.  There was heavy rain accompanied by an electrical storm on 1 day.  This was a rare & exciting experience in Seattle.

September Garden Pictures & Bloom Times

Achillea millefolium 'Terracotta' & Yucca filamentosa 'Bright Edge' September 2011

Agapanthus africanus September 2011

Calluna vulgaris 'Wickwar Flame' & Hebe x pimeleoides 'Quicksilver' September 2011

Eucomis comosa September 2011

 Hydrangea arborescens September 2011

Below is a list of plants that began to bloom in my garden in Seattle in September 2011. I recorded the date when the 1st flower opened, not when they were in bud. I think this information is helpful in planning your garden. If you have room for more plants that bloom in August, you can choose something new that will bloom with something you have, or you can fill temporal gaps between blooms.  Nurseries in Seattle usually sell plants when they are in bloom. I have included dates from previous years. Weather conditions probably account for most of the difference in bloom times. September 2011 was  warmer & drier than normal.  The average monthly maximum temperature was 73.5F/23C.  The normal average monthly maximum temperature is 70.5F/21.4C.  The highest temperature was 85F/29.4C, the lowest 46F/7.8C.  We had 1.29 inches of rain, 0.21 less than normal.  It rained on 11 days.  There were 11 cloudy days, 10 partly cloudy days & 11 sunny days.

09-02-11 Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

09-03-11 Cyclamen hederifolium 9-10-10, 9-01-08

09-05-11 Eryngium amethystinum 9-03-10

09-26-11 Arbutus unedo 9-28-10, 9-20-08

09-26-11 Asternovae-angliae 'Hella Lacy' 9-28-10, 9-29-08

August Garden Pictures & Bloom Times

Anemone x hybrida August 2011

Calluna vulgaris 'Wickwar Flame' & Hebe x pimeleoides 'Quicksilver' August 2011

Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Blue Surprise' & Echinops ritro August 2011

Lilium 'White Henryi' August 2011

 Verbascum bombyciferum August 2011

Below is a list of plants that began to bloom in my garden in Seattle in August 2011. I recorded the date when the 1st flower opened, not when they were in bud. I think this information is helpful in planning your garden. If you have room for more plants that bloom in August, you can choose something new that will bloom with something you have, or you can fill temporal gaps between blooms.  Nurseries in Seattle usually sell plants when they are in bloom. I have included dates from previous years. Weather conditions probably account for most of the difference in bloom times.

August 2011 was  slightly cooler & much drier than normal.  The average monthly maximum temperature was 75.8F/24.3C.  The normal average monthly temperature is 76.3F/24.6C.  The highest temperature was 87F/30.5C, the lowest 52F/11C.  We had 0.13 inches of rain, 0.75 less than normal.  It rained lightly on 4 days.  There were 6 cloudy days, 14 partly cloudy days & 11 sunny days.

08-04-11 Erica terminalis
08-05-11 Callistemon rigidus

08-05-11 Galtonia candicans 8-01-08

08-05-11 Lilium 'Black Beauty' 8-01-10

08-08-11 Hemerocallis 'Double Henrietta'

08-09-11 Echinops ritro

08-10-11 Crocosmia 'Corwin's Brilliant' 8-01-10, 8-08-08

08-10-11 Liatris spicata 8-03-10, 8-11-08

08-13-11 Erica x griffithsii 'Heaven Scent'

08-14-11 Calluna 'Wickwar Flame' 8-06-10, 8-08-08

08-14-11 Kniphofia 'Percy's Pride'

08-17-11 Agapanthus africanus 8-08-08

08-17-11 Eucomis comosa 8-01-10, 8-17-08

08-17-11 Sedum 'Matrona' 8-19-10, 8-17-08

08-17-11 Sedum 'Vera Jameson' 8-19-10, 8-17-08

08-23-11 Hemerocallis 'Frans Hals'

08-28-11 Hemerocallis 'Flash Fire'

08-29-11 Sedum 'Brilliant' 8-22-10