This is the month that the garden gives return for your labour. Many vegetables grown this year are providing their harvests rewarding us for our efforts providing endless pleasure to the taste buds. The garden in general should be a riot of colour with summer bedding providing endless blooms and perennials rising about the ground giving both height and structure to the garden. Though during July there are still many things that require our attention in the garden we can afford to step back a little and enjoy spending time just appreciating the garden, after all that is what it’s for.

Lawncare

Keep lawns trimmed regularly when the weather allows but avoid cutting the lawn in very hot sun as this will do more harm than good. If the weather is exceptionally hot and dry increase the height of the blades reducing the amount of grass removed to help reduce moisture loss. If you haven’t already, you can apply a lawn feed to improve the health of the lawn but ensure you follow the instructions to avoid burning of the lawn.

Treat weeds with a specific lawn weed control where weed invasion is high. Where there are only occasional weeds, keep them under control by removing by hand or applying a weed killer stick to indivual weeds.

Neaten up edges of lawns by re-shaping the edges using a lawn edger, cutting back the edges by about 1/2 inch. Where edges have gone thin, you can cut out that section with extra grass and turn it around so the bald area is in the lawn which will make it easier to re-seed later.

Written by Day Lily on 2007/07/01 | Permalink to this article

Summer Bedding

Keep dead heading summer bedding removing flowers that have finished ensuring you remove the entire flower and not just the petals, to prevent the plants from developing seeds and to encourage more flowers. Don’t be afraid to take off straggly growth as this will encourage plants to bush out further. Regular weekly feeds and frequent watering will keep plants happy and healthy reducing the risks of disease. Keep an eye out for aphids and treat with a suitable chemical or organic product to control.

Written by Day Lily on 2007/07/01 | Permalink to this article

Perennials

Tall growing perennials if not already staked should be to reduce the risk of damage from heavy rain and wind. Remove faded flowers to encourage further flowers to be developed and remove any damaged or yellowing foliage to keep plants looking tidy. Look out for pests such as aphids and slugs and treat accordingly. A liquid or granular feed will help produce stronger healthier growth.

Written by Day Lily on 2007/07/01 | Permalink to this article

Pest and Disease

Keep an eye out for pests and disease around the garden and getting it under conrol now will save you a lot of work later in the summer.

Lilies are prone to attack from the Lily Beetle which is bright red. This needs to be dealt with at the first signs of attack, as they are vey destructive creatures and breed quickly.

Other things to keep an eye out for are:

• Greenfly
• Black Spot on Roses
• Viburnum Beetle
• Vine Weevil and Caterpillars
• White Fly
• Red Spider Mite

For information on controls for these pest go to Pests & Diseases or to purchase products go to Pest Control Products

Written by Day Lily on 2007/07/01 | Permalink to this article

Weeds

Weeds need to be kept under control for many reasons other than just to make the garden look tidy. During hot weather, weeds take up water the would otherwise be there for your plants as well as using up nutrients in the soil that are needed for your plants to develop more.

Perennial weeds such as Dandylions need to have their roots removed completely as they will just keep coming back more and more. Where it is not possible to remove them completely, treat with a systemic weed killer or weed killer stick.

Written by Day Lily on 2007/07/01 | Permalink to this article