Seasonal jobs for the month: July
| 1. |
Prevent leaf scorch of container-grown Japanese maples by keeping plants well watered, and in a sheltered spot out of strong sunshine and prevailing winds. |
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| 2. |
Keep birdbaths topped up when the weather is dry. Clean them regularly to reduce the chances of spreading bird pox. |
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| 3. |
Female flowers of courgettes, marrows, squashes and pumpkins may need manual pollination with the male flower if their fruit set is poor. |
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| 4. |
To prevent blackening of tomato fruit at the flower end (blossom end rot) and fruit splitting, keep plants evenly moist. |
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| 5. |
For best flavour, harvest early potatoes when they are about hen’s egg size. Lift one plant first to check the development of tubers. |
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| 6. |
Watch out for pear rust, bright orange spots on the upper leaf surface. Remove the affected leaves promptly and apply a fungicide (such as Westland Plant Rescue Fungus Control). |
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Kitchen garden
- Harvest autumn planted onions, shallots and garlic
- Sow early in the month vegetables such as beetroot, spinach, spinach beet (chard), kohl rabi and turnips for autumn picking
- Water soft fruit during dry weather for good fruit development
- Remove the growing point on outdoor cordon tomatoes when they produced four to five trusses
- Harvest globe artichokes before the scales start to open
Ornamental garden
- Buy and plant autumn flowering bulbs such as Colchicum and autumn flowering crocus (Crocus medius, C. pulchellus and C. speciosus)
- Deadhead regularly bedding displays and roses to encourage flowering
- When going away move containers to shaded place and group them together
- Remove reverted shoots of variegated shrubs
- Control weeds before they to go to seed.
- Make sure that newly planted garden plants do not suffer from drought, but avoid over watering
Pest and diseases
- If the weather is wet, continue spraying tomatoes and potatoes with a copper based fungicide to protect against blight
- Sudden dieback of healthy clematis stems is often caused by clematis wilt. Remove the affected stems entirely
- Check brassicas for cabbage mealy aphid and caterpillars
- Apart from fungicide application, consider spraying roses affected with a foliar feed such as ‘Maxicrop’ or ‘Phostrogen’
- Azalea gall disease causes development of distinct, curiously looking galls on the leaves. Remove the galls before they turn white. Camellias can suffer from a similar disease.
- Sooty mould on the foliage on plants such Camellia, holly, Trachelospermum and Rhododendron usually indicates cushion scale attack. Apply an insecticide to control the newly hatched nymphs now
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Ponds
- Remover spent flowers and old leaves of water lilies and other aquatic plants cutting them off below the water line before they sink and rot
- Provide source of water for wildlife by keeping ponds and bird baths topped up when the weather is dry
- Remove blanket and duck weed regularly
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