For those of you new to gardening hopefully you have enjoyed the explosion of growth and colour during June.
July is a time to keep on top of dead heading as this will encourage more flowers, the flowers will otherwise form seeds and the plant will think it has achieved its purpose in life and will give up flowering. Hanging baskets can also be revived by cutting back the growth. As your hardy geraniums stop flowering cut them back to encourage a second flush later in the year. Cut back delphiniums, penstemons and lupins and they may also reward you with more blooms. Lastly, repeat flowering roses benefit hugely from deadheading.
All the plants, especially those in hanging baskets and pots will keep healthy and productive with a weekly dose of a seaweed based feed using rain water or grey water if at all possible. Sweet peas need to be watered every day and the flowers cut very regularly otherwise they will quickly fade.
If you have any vegetables keep watering, keeping them moist and weed by hand or with a hoe so the vegetables get the benefit of all the water and nutrients available.
There are not many gardens that do not suffer from at least one of the worst two invaders, ground elder and bindweed. They have plenty of leaf now so its the best time to treat them with a glyphosate-based weed killer. They are worthwhile keeping at bay as they can take over your garden. If you do not know what they look like look them up on the internet.
Lastly, keep a keen eye on all your plants for disease and treat accordingly. The staff in your favourite garden centre can be incredibly helpful if you are unsure of what you are dealing with, just take along a picture of the problem on your phone to show them.
Having a garden is a joy and the most important thing of all is to take a little time to sit and watch the wildlife your garden attracts and the beauty you have created. My favourite time is sitting early in the morning with my bowl of cereal!!
The Tidy Gardener
July is a time to keep on top of dead heading as this will encourage more flowers, the flowers will otherwise form seeds and the plant will think it has achieved its purpose in life and will give up flowering. Hanging baskets can also be revived by cutting back the growth. As your hardy geraniums stop flowering cut them back to encourage a second flush later in the year. Cut back delphiniums, penstemons and lupins and they may also reward you with more blooms. Lastly, repeat flowering roses benefit hugely from deadheading.
All the plants, especially those in hanging baskets and pots will keep healthy and productive with a weekly dose of a seaweed based feed using rain water or grey water if at all possible. Sweet peas need to be watered every day and the flowers cut very regularly otherwise they will quickly fade.
If you have any vegetables keep watering, keeping them moist and weed by hand or with a hoe so the vegetables get the benefit of all the water and nutrients available.
There are not many gardens that do not suffer from at least one of the worst two invaders, ground elder and bindweed. They have plenty of leaf now so its the best time to treat them with a glyphosate-based weed killer. They are worthwhile keeping at bay as they can take over your garden. If you do not know what they look like look them up on the internet.
Lastly, keep a keen eye on all your plants for disease and treat accordingly. The staff in your favourite garden centre can be incredibly helpful if you are unsure of what you are dealing with, just take along a picture of the problem on your phone to show them.
Having a garden is a joy and the most important thing of all is to take a little time to sit and watch the wildlife your garden attracts and the beauty you have created. My favourite time is sitting early in the morning with my bowl of cereal!!
The Tidy Gardener
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