Midsummer is a time for enjoying the results of your earlier efforts. There are always jobs to be done, of course, but you should also make time to relax. As most things are sown or planted, the emphasis is on weeding, watering and feeding. In dry summers water shortages can be a problem, but when you do water, do it thoroughly, as shallow watering will encourage surface rooting and make the plants even more vulnerable to drought.
Midsummer is great time for assessing what looks good in the garden, and what could look even better. Take photos and make notes, and start planning right now for next year’s display.
This is also a good time to move plants around. Always keep the rootball intact, and move it with as much of the soil as possible. If the roots do get severed, then cut back the top growth and remove the flowers to give the plant a good chance to recover. Water them in well and they should recover fairly quickly.
In your flower garden you should:
– apply a rose fertilizer once the main flush of flowering is over,
– feed greedy plants like geraniums and occasionally give a foliar feed,
– cut back lavender heads after flowering,
– deadhead bedding and border plants regularly to ensure new buds develop,
Remove dead flowerheads neatly and clearly where they join the stem.
– divide and replant border irises,
– take semi-ripe cuttings,
– clip beech, holly, hornbeam and yew hedges towards the end of the period,
– layer shrubs and carnations,
– plant colchicums, to flower in the fall, when they are available,
Colchicums
– transplant biennials and perennial seedlings to a nursery bed,
– mow the lawn except in very dry weather,
– order new bulb catalogues and bulbs for fall delivery.
In the greenhouse/conservatory you also have jobs to do: feed pot plants regularly, take semi-ripe cuttings of shrubs, feed tomatoes and chrysanthemums regularly, remove sideshoots and yellowing leaves from tomatoes regularly, keep a vigilant watch for pests and diseases, thin out the young fruit on grape vines, regularly check container plants and water twice a day if necessary, thoroughly clean all pots that are no longer required, and store away, use shading and ventilation when the temperatures are high, and spray water on the floor and benches to increase the humidity.
