It is holiday-time. If you are not at home it may be wise to have someone that waters your plants. It can be very hot and dry this time of the year. If you are home you can enjoy your garden. Of course there are some thing you can do.
Lawn
- Mow the lawn every week or every other week.
- Keep the lawn a little longer than usual (3-5 cm (1.2-2 inches)) to prevent scorching and preferably mow in the evening.
- You can scarify the lawn at the end of this month if you have done that in the spring, but it is not always necessary. If you have not scarified yet this year then at the end of this month is a good time to do it.
- After scarifying you can aerate the lawn. You can do this by pushing a garden fork about 10 cm (4 inches) deep into the soil in the areas where the ground is compacted and rock the fork back and forth.
Pruning
- Prune raspberries after harvesting. The canes that have carried the fruits may be cut to the ground.
- Prune summer-flowering shrubs and climbers after flowering.
- Cut long, thin stems of the Wisteria back to about 15 cm from the main stem.
- Trim evergreen hedges.
- Deadhead to encourage the growth of new flowers.
Planting and sowing
- Plants, shrubs, hedges and trees in containers can be planted all year round but it would be wise to wait until autumn with shrubs and trees. It may become quite dry which might prevent the successful establishment of your new trees and shrubs.
- Towards the end of this month you can sow hardy annuals directly in the garden. They will flower next year.
Other
- Watch out for diseases and pests like snails, slugs, aphids and scarlet lily beetles.
- Place a bowl of water for the birds and the hedgehogs.
- Remove weeds.
- Daffodils and other bulbs can be ordered and planted now.
- Harvest seeds and store them somewhere dark and dry.
- Look if plants need some extra staking. Do not forget to support branches of fruit trees that are heavy with fruits.
- Check if the ties around the trees are not too tight or too loose.
- Harvest apples and pears.