July Gardening Jobs
Monthly Jobs: July
This month can be a satisfying one for gardeners and allotment owners, as much of the hard labour is done. Now is the time for light maintenance, watering and
enjoying your outdoor space during the sunny spells.
See our top jobs for the month below…
Feed, deadhead and water to encourage further flowering
Annual plants – including bedding and basket varieties – will welcome regular watering and feeding at this time of year.
Pair this with a bit of deadheading as and when the need arises, and your annuals could continue to flower until the first frosts.
Top water features up to keep them running smoothly
Water features can quickly start to dry out during hot weather.
When topping them up, ensure the pump is fully covered to achieve the best visual effect and avoid wear.
Sow Dwarf Beans for Autumn harvest
If you are a vegetable gardener, the sowing season doesn’t have to be over just yet!
Dwarf Beans can be planted this month – though the earlier the better. By sowing now, you could have harvests right up until October.
Dwarf Bean seed packets are available at all of our centres, starting from £2.80*.
Keep an eye out for pest problems
Pest infestations can be common at this time of year.
Catching them early is key to limit damage to your plants, crops and flowers. This is a great excuse to wander around your garden or allotment and admire your plants up close!
Take cuttings from tender perennials
Now is a good time to take cuttings from tender perennials such as Fuchsias.
If you haven’t done it before – give it a go! It is a relatively simple way to grow a new plant from one you already have, making it ideal for those looking to cut the cost of gardening.
Using a product such as rooting gel or powder can help to speed along the process and increase success rate.
A quick ‘How To’ using Rooting Gel:
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Take a cutting - try Googling your chosen plant to find out where is the best place to cut from
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Soak the cutting in water (half an hour for 'soft stems' or overnight for hard wood cuttings)
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Dip the end of the cutting in rooting gel and then insert into a suitable compost
Trim hedging plants
Conifers, Laurel and Buxus will all benefit from a tidy up this month. Hedges can form fundamental features and boundaries in the garden, so keeping them neat helps the whole garden to look its best.
Top tip for trimming large hedges back: ensure the bottom part of the hedge is slightly wider than the top. This makes light more likely to reach lower shoots and leaves, promoting healthy growth.
Feed tomato plants with every watering
Once fruits start to appear on your tomato plants, feed them with a specialist tomato feed each time you water them.
This achieves better taste and quality.
Going away? Set up automatic watering
Whether you are a houseplant enthusiast or an outdoor gardener, you will have thirsty plants this month!
If you don’t have friends or family who live nearby and can help you out, try setting up automatic watering. There are different solutions depending on your needs.
We stock Hozelock products such as the ‘AquaSolo’ bottle caps above (from £4.99). There are also pot watering kits that can be attached to your outdoor tap to automatically dispense water while you’re away*.
* available at the time of writing