Let the heat go on!
Extend your garden’s summer colour.
Plant agapanthus (African lily) – these desirable, long lasting blooms come in beautiful blue hues, or white, and stand majestically above the border like giant periscopes. Fill in gaps in borders with late flowering perennials – plant bedding such as dahlias, begonias, and rudbeckia.
Take softwood cuttings from shrubs such as pyracantha, cotinus, hydrangeas and spiraea.
Cuttings are much easier to overwinter than full-sized plants so clean those pots and sharpen that knife! Summer cuttings can be taken from a number of plants including fuchsia, lavender, pelargoniums, rosemary, sage (salvia) and other shrubby perennials. They root easily and quickly bulk up so you can pot them on by autumn. Houseplants too – houseleeks or sempervivums, are one of the easiest plants to propagate. Always use sharp secateurs when taking cuttings. You can use a hormone rooting gel or powder. Don’t let them dry out and you will be rewarded with several new plants for next year.
Get edgy…define the lawn’s edges with an edging tool, to sharpen the look.
Aftercare for strawberries. Strawberry plants need tidying up, remove straw and cut away old leaves to let light and air into the crown, reducing the risk of rotting and fungal disease. Cut away old, unripened fruit. Anchor some strawberry runners in compost to make new plants for a new strawberry patch elsewhere next year. (Replace strawberry plants every three years with new ones planted elsewhere, to prevent a build up of pests and diseases in the soil).
Good hygiene. Remove dead material from plants – any damaged foliage creates a weak spot that’s an ideal entry point for pests and diseases.
The compost heap will be filling up with grass clippings and other cut vegetation, turn it over with a garden fork to boost the oxygen supply and help the composting process.
Mow regularly, and make sure the blades are set to the highest setting to prevent any extra stress on the grass. Feed your lawn with a spring and summer lawn fertiliser. Wait until the soil is damp after a good rain, so the treatment can encourage growth. Weed treatments should be used with caution in hot weather, tackle weeds by hand or spot treat individual weeds with a selective weed killer to avoid damage to your lawn. If this leaves some bare patches, you can overseed with grass seed to repair them.
Feed, water and deadhead summer bedding regularly, in pots, borders, and hanging baskets. Cut back early summer perennials, such as hardy geraniums and delphiniums after flowering, for a second flush. Feed and deadhead roses to keep them flowering strongly.