Gardening Advice and Helpful Tips
Your gardening advice for July.
Will Clark
Plant Area Manager
July is here and the garden is a joy to behold. Will Clark shares his top 10 jobs to keep it looking healthy and vibrant all summer long.
1. Maintenance work
July is one of the hottest months of the year – happy days! Now is the time to really get on top of the general maintenance in your garden. Once you’ve ticked off your checklist, you can sit back, relax and enjoy its beauty at its fullest.
2. Make the cut
Remember to deadhead your hanging baskets, containers and bedding plants to ensure repeat flowering, whilst keeping the blooms looking fresh!
3. Thorny problem
Before your roses come into flower, it is essential that you keep an eye out for any green fly, white fly and black spot. Remove them as you see them or spray with soapy water. This will help to maintain healthy growth throughout the year.
4. Green fuel
Now is the last chance to apply a liquid summer feed to your lawn. This is advised, especially if it was missed in spring. You can find a variety of lawn fertilisers in your local garden centres. Lawns will also need mowing once a week to keep on top of the fast summer growth.
5. Water works
Be sure to water your plants regularly, especially those that are newly planted, and hoe off the weeds which will thrive in the sunshine.
6. Get fruity
If you like blackberries and don’t have a big space, why not grow in a hanging basket or container. Varieties best suited to smaller places include ‘Black Cascade’. Blueberries also work in containers. ‘Lucky Berry’ is a self-fertile dwarf variety that’s ideal for pots. In four months you will be harvesting fresh berries!
7. Dig in
Second early potatoes should be ready so it’s time to harvest your lovely spuds. Also known as new potatoes, these will be delicious served buttered with fresh mint.
8. Herb garden
Why not grow your own herb planter ready for summer barbecues. Rosemary, sage, thyme, oregano and tarragon will definitely enhance the flavours of your grill. Plant in a container, add horticultural grit at the base for drainage, add multi-purpose peat free compost and keep well-watered.
9. Bumper crop
Tomato plants will definitely benefit from a weekly liquid feed right now. The same goes for cucumbers if you are growing them in your greenhouse.
10. Perfect pruning
Now is the time to prune your wisteria. You should cut back the long, whippy growths so you end up with five or six leaves on each. This encourages it to form flower buds rather than green growth so you’ll be rewarded with a good crop of lilac loveliness next year.
More Advice?
Ruth McNamee
Greenhouse Senior
October on the Veg Plot...
October is a great month to get ahead in the veg patch, writes Ruth McNamee.
Choose a sunny sheltered spot to sow broad beans. The variety Aquadulce Claudia does well from autumn sowing. Sow a double row with seeds 20cm apart. These plants should germinate, stand over winter and quickly establish when the weather warms. The crop can be enjoyed a couple of weeks earlier than spring sown seeds.
You can start to plant out garlic this month 15cm apart in rows 30cm apart. This can be left to next month if preferred. And there is still time to plant out overwintering onions. Make a shallow drill and place the sets pointy end up 15cms apart in rows 30cms apart. Onions are ready to harvest early next summer. Try onion and garlic in big pots and keep in a sheltered spot for the best results.
October is a great month to get your permanent planting done. It’s a good time to establish your fruit and asparagus beds while the soil is still warm from the summer heat. Rhubarb and asparagus crowns will now be available in the garden centre. Prepare the beds by removing all weeds. These crops will be in these beds for many years so it helps to give them a good start.
May is the month where strawberries flower so mulch plants with straw.
Prune early flowering shrubs such as the Forsynthia and Weigela.
Direct sow basil next to tomato seedlings to help draw white fly away.
Veg seeds that can be sown outdoors include courgette, beetroot and sprouts.
Lift and divide your spring bulbs and plant where you want for next year.
Check all foliage for lily beetle and greenfly and dispose of any found.
Gardening Jobs for January
Buy seeds to be sown in January or February.
Buy seed potatoes, onion sets and garlic.
Appraise the garden for form and structure, and plan alterations and additions.
Plant window boxes and containers for seasonal colour.
Protect vulnerable plants from frost and wind damage.
Firm in any autumn-planted shrubs and border plants lifted by frost.
Knock snow off branches, especially on conifers and hedges, if they are bending under the weight.
Check stakes and ties on newly planted trees.
Remember the birds in the garden and put out food for them, especially when it’s frosty.
