Annuals may be looking kind of tired and shabby. Cut them back and keep fertilizing for continued display. Vegetables also need regular fertilization throughout the growing season to produce bounteous harvests. Chrysanthemums, asters, and other fall-flowering perennials should get their last feeding before the middle of August. Make sure the water hangs around long enough to do some good.
Mulches reduce evaporative losses.
Additionally, they keep the soil cooler which is also helpful. The small size mulch grade pine bark chips are good looking, effective, and readily available. First weed, then water, finish with mulch. Mulches are most effective when applied an inch or two deep. If dry weather continues, move some mulch aside to check soil moisture, then recover.