It may be extra warm in July, but there are many chores you need to do now to insure a productive and beautiful garden.
The warm days of midsummer call people to loll on hammocks under trees, sip on cool drinks, or simply stay indoors.
But there are some vital chores you need to do now in your garden during July. Put on some protective cover to help avoid ultraviolet sunrays, get plenty of fluids ready, and don’t overdo yourself. Remember that true gardeners actually garden for pleasure and relaxation. You don’t have to be obsessive about it.
1. Divide oriental poppies and irises. Both should have completed their blooming cycle by now and it’s time to get that past.
2. Stop pinching back flowers. Whatever bushy growth you are seeking in a plant has probably already occurred.
3. Do continue deadheading, that is, removing spent flowers. This will help summer-flowering plants to keep on blooming.
4. Check leaves on plants for leaf miners and snails. Removing leaves and debris from around plants and replacing it with mulch will go far in reducing these pests.
5. You can begin succession planting now for beans, lettuce, radishes and corn.
6. Water newly planted trees and plants as needed. Feel the soil. If it’s dry to the touch or the plants are wilted, water them.
7. Start seeds for fall crops: broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower.
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