(Compiled by Lyn McCallum)
Remember to adhere to the current water restrictions. If you are using water from a well point or borehole, please use it sensibly. Don’t waste it simply because it is free!
The best time to water the lawn is early in the morning. This allows the grass to dry off before nightfall, thus preventing fungal diseases developing. Mow at least once a week and feed with Blade Runner and water well. Lawns can be fed every 8 weeks throughout summer.
Continue to deadhead your flowering annuals and perennials to prolong their flowering period. Feed every three to four weeks with a liquid fertilizer Nitrosol, Organiksol or Seagro. Check on the mulch and replenish as required.
On hot days containers and hanging baskets will need to be watered every day. If there is a hot dry wind, baskets may well need watering twice a day. Remember, containers and baskets need regular feeding with a liquid food e.g. Seagro, Nitrosol, or Organiksol, as nutrients leach out very quickly with constant watering.
Keep your ferns damp and well mulched during the hot summer months. Feed with Seagro or Nitrosol, or use a food specially formulated for ferns – Shake and Grow Fern Food, which is sprinkled onto the soil and then watered in. Ferns benefit from having their foliage sprayed with water during hot windy spells. It is also a good idea to have a container of water near ferns to increase humidity in the area.
Water your summer flowering bulbs when necessary. Keep a watchful eye out for lily borer and amaryllis caterpillars; and thrips and gladiolus fly on gladioli.
Dahlias love a liquid manure. To make this, fill a large bucket with water. Use a bucket with a lid to keep away flies and to keep in the strong smell! Put some good quality cow or horse manure in a hessian or orange bag, tie securely and immerse it in the bucket for at least a week. Give the mixture a good swirl around every now and then. To use, dilute the liquid from the bucket with water until it is the colour of weak tea and water the dahlias with this. The manure in the bag will need to be replaced periodically, after about 6-8 weeks.
Cut off the dead flower stalks of delphiniums and foxgloves to just below the last flower to encourage the side shoots to develop and flower. Stake the flower spikes if necessary.
Deadhead roses regularly. Once their first flush of flowers is over and sprinkle a handful of Sudden Impact or 3.1.5 Organic fertilizer around each bush. Water in well. Check mulch, replenish where necessary and water deeply at least twice a week. Continue with your usual spraying programme.
Keep hydrangeas well watered and mulched. If the leaves are yellowing give each bush a watering with epsom salts – 1 teaspoon in 5 litres of water. Continue to apply aluminuim sulphate for blue flowers and lime for pink ones. Feed with Rapid Raiser, or 3.1.5 Organic fertilizer.
Garden pests will abound from this month! Keep a sharp lookout for the usual slugs and snails, as well as the caterpillars of the hawk moth and the cabbage white butterfly. Other nasties to keep a wary eye out for are aphids, tip wilters and fruit and rose beetles.
Keep a check on weeds and pull out before they set seed. This will save you hours of work in the future! Never put weeds that are in seed onto your compost heap. Rather throw them into a waste bin.
Once again, remember to conserve water and keep your whole garden well mulched.
