# What to plant in August in Dubai

Canonical: https://plantguide.ae/what-to-plant/august · Updated: 2026-10-05
Source: Ghaf Gardens (https://plantguide.ae/what-to-plant/august)

**Survival month, with next year's plans.** Climate: mean high 41.9°C, mean low 31.5°C, rain 0 mm. 3 plants to sow or plant, 43 in flower, fruit or harvest.

## Overview

August is the peak of the heat and the quiet start of next year. Highs average nearly 42°C, the hottest of the twelve months, so the survival rules stand: water before sunrise, keep shade on young planting, and keep new planting to seed trays in shade. But the second half of the month is when preparation begins. Clear spent summer crops, fork in well-rotted compost or aged manure, and give the soil a long, deep irrigation to wash out the salts that build up over summer. Then leave it to settle.

This is also the time to rethink the plan. Walk the garden at 6am, note what struggled, and decide what to replace. Order seed and seedlings for the autumn vegetable garden, and start tomatoes, peppers and aubergines in trays in light shade, ready to go out in September. A garden is planned in August and planted from September, so the October rush is spent planting rather than deciding.

## Sow or plant in August (3)

### Vegetables & herbs

- **Chilli** (chilli) — Capsicum annuum · فلفل حار · vegetable, exotic · full sun, moderate water · heat 3 salt 2 drought 2 shade 2 ease 3 · plant/sow Feb–Apr, Aug–Nov · sow · [page](https://plantguide.ae/plants/chilli.md)
- **Aubergine** (aubergine) — Solanum melongena · باذنجان · vegetable, exotic · full sun, moderate water · heat 4 salt 2 drought 2 shade 1 ease 3 · plant/sow Feb–Mar, Aug–Nov · sow · [page](https://plantguide.ae/plants/aubergine.md)
- **Cucumber** (cucumber) — Cucumis sativus · خيار · vegetable, exotic · full sun, high water · heat 2 salt 2 drought 1 shade 1 ease 3 · plant/sow Feb–Apr, Aug–Oct · sow · [page](https://plantguide.ae/plants/cucumber.md)

## In flower, fruit or harvest (43)

- Samr (samr): fruiting
- Royal Poinciana (royal-poinciana): fruiting
- Frangipani (frangipani): flowering
- Olive (olive): fruiting
- Moringa (moringa): fruiting, harvest
- Date Palm (date-palm): harvest
- Washingtonia Palm (washingtonia-palm): fruiting
- Bismarck Palm (bismarck-palm): fruiting
- Arabian Jasmine (arabian-jasmine): flowering
- Ixora (ixora): flowering
- Hibiscus (hibiscus): flowering
- Oleander (oleander): flowering
- Lantana (lantana): flowering
- Sea Jasmine (sea-jasmine): flowering
- Desert Rose (desert-rose): flowering
- Vinca (vinca): flowering
- Portulaca (portulaca): flowering
- Banana (banana): flowering
- Heliconia (heliconia): flowering
- Mango (mango): harvest
- Fig (fig): fruiting, harvest
- Pomegranate (pomegranate): fruiting, harvest
- Guava (guava): fruiting, harvest
- Papaya (papaya): fruiting, harvest
- Okra (okra): flowering, harvest
- Curry leaf (curry-leaf): flowering, fruiting, harvest
- Duranta (duranta): flowering, fruiting
- Jatropha (jatropha): flowering
- Ruellia (ruellia): flowering
- Natal Plum (natal-plum): fruiting
- Acalypha (acalypha): flowering
- Golden Shower Tree (golden-shower-tree): fruiting
- Purple fountain grass (fountain-grass): flowering
- Lemongrass (lemongrass): harvest
- Mondo grass (mondo-grass): flowering
- Vetiver (vetiver): flowering
- Rangoon creeper (rangoon-creeper): flowering
- Allamanda (allamanda): flowering
- Celosia (celosia): flowering
- Prickly Pear (prickly-pear): fruiting
- Golden Barrel Cactus (golden-barrel-cactus): flowering
- Water Lily (water-lily): flowering
- Lotus (lotus): flowering

## Jobs this month: Still peak heat; hold the course on watering

**Garden**
- Water before 8am or after 6pm to reduce evaporation loss, per DEWA guidance
- Keep shade cloth on young trees and shrubs through the hottest hours
- Check drip lines weekly for blocked or damaged emitters
- Hold off on planting; wait for temperatures to ease before adding anything new

**Pool**
- Test pool chemistry weekly — heat burns chlorine faster in summer
- Clean the pool more frequently; algae grows fast in high heat

## Tips

- **Begin soil preparation late in the month.** Clear dead plants, loosen compacted beds and add compost or aged manure. Give it a few weeks to settle before planting.
- **Flush the salts.** A long, deep irrigation washes accumulated salts below the root zone. Do it before you feed or plant.
- **Start seedlings in trays.** Tomatoes, peppers and aubergines started in light shade will be ready to transplant in September.
- **Walk the garden at 6am.** Note scorched, thin or dead patches. This is the survey that decides what to replant in October.
- **Service irrigation now.** Repair leaks and replace blocked emitters before autumn planting adds new demand.

## Watch out for

- **A slightly softer morning is not autumn.** Nights still sit near 31°C. Planting early because it feels a little cooler costs plants.
- **Fresh manure heats the soil.** Use well-rotted compost or aged manure, and apply it early so it settles before roots reach it.
- **Letting summer discipline slip.** August is the hottest month on average. Keep the early watering, shade and mulch in place until October.

## Related guides

- [Watering your garden through a Dubai summer](https://plantguide.ae/guides/watering-garden-dubai-summer)
- [The UAE planting calendar: what to plant in Dubai, month by month](https://plantguide.ae/guides/uae-planting-calendar)

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