You’ve guessed it that was a subtle lead in to mentioning the lawn again. It should be watered as necessary and fed regularly but remember the more you feed the more you need to mow.
The nice thing about this year is that the evenings have been warm enough recently to sit out in the garden and enjoy the sights, sounds and smells. Lavender and Geranium in particular fill the night air with their distinctive scents. Chocolate Cosmos provides a very interesting twist to standard everyday garden planting with an unmistakeable chocolate aroma. If you did not get round to planting out your summer bedding it is still not too late so finish planting out summer bedding plants in borders, baskets and containers.
Remove old flowers on perennials such as lupins, penstemon, coreopsis and delphiniums, this will encourage a second flush of flowers later in the season, to encourage new growth a slug of feed will be beneficial.
Pimms, iced tea, chilled lemonade or even a cold beer seem a good idea and will help you through those what to do next moments.
For well advanced plants, pinch out the growing points to encourage bushy growth and more flowers. Container plants will need the occasional (!) feed to keep them in tip top condition. Fuchsias make lovely stop gaps and can grow large enough to become a feature but choose wisely, especially now that fuchsia gall mite is on the loose. If you like aquilegia, leave the seedheads on to encourage spreading, if not remove the seedheads to stop them spreading (simple isn’t it?)
Some trees and shrubs can throw shoots (suckers) from their base. Cut them off to keep them tidy and to prevent them sapping strength from the plant.
Roses will need regular feeding through the summer. You will also need to keep an eye out for blackspot, mildew and aphids all common problems. In colder areas, allow shrub roses to ripen by discontinuing feeding them at the end of the month. As can be deduced from the increasing levels of pests and diseases, July is a good month for wildlife, particularly for insects, slugs and snails. Hopefully the garden birds, especially blue tits, blackbirds and thrushes will keep the levels down which should ensure a healthy bird population as well. Apart from the Magpies which seem to have taken small chicks from the garden (such a striking bird though).
Of course there is always a down side to things, so remember to net fruit bushes to keep the aforementioned birds away, but ensure birds do not get trapped in the netting.
Keep on top of the weeding because the old adage (?) saying one years seeding means several years weeding, unless of course you are trying to provide a wildlife habitat. If so plants such as honeysuckle, evening primrose and sweet scented stocks will attract moths and butterflies, whilst Lavender is will attract bees, butterflies and other flying insects into your garden. Herbs such as thyme, marjoram, fennel, chives and rosemary will also act as a honey pot for a range of insects.
August will be here sooner than you think. Till then!