Gardening in July: What to do and what to plant?

July is a month of high summer, and gardeners need to be mindful of the hot and dry conditions that can affect their plants. Here are some tips and tasks to keep your garden healthy and thriving this July…

Things to do in your garden in July:

• Inspect and repair irrigation systems
• Spread mulch to help retain moisture in the soil and keep roots cool, maintain a 3 to 4-inch mulch layer around trees and shrubs
• Take stock of the garden and consider adjustments for next year’s garden, a top tip is to keep a detailed notebook of plans, ideas, and tips for next year, and start considering what changes to make to keep the garden at its best
• Prune flowers such as dahlias, delphiniums, crocosmia, and other upright spike-style flowers
• Fertilize heat-resistant flowers
• Set out warm-season vegetables and annuals
• Deadhead blooming annuals and perennials for repeat flowering
• Harvest vegetables immediately when ripe to avoid rotting produce that attracts insects
• Pinch back lanky annuals to encourage bushy growth and more flowers.
• Reap herbs for maximum flavour by harvesting them as the first flower buds appear
• Remove faded flowers from perennials after they finish blooming
• Water hanging baskets and patio pots daily during warm weather
• Fertilize annual flowerbeds with an all-purpose fertilizer to encourage more blooms
• Harvest lavender stems for use in bath sachets or drying
• Cultivate your own compost pile
• Propagate shrubs, herbs, and spring perennials to spread plants to other parts of the garden or to share with friends and neighbours

Things to plant in July:

The long, warm days with good light levels speed up the germination process, helping you to extend your season of cropping in the vegetable patch and boost stocks of perennials, biennials, and any indoor exotics. Quick-growing crops like radish, French beans, soybeans, and carrots can be sown now. It’s also a good month to plant out young plants grown from seed in previous months. It’s the last month to plant out young courgettes, squashes, and sweetcorn.

Did you manage to get all of your June tasks done? Maybe it’s good to make a start on your to-do list for August too…

Looking for more on gardening?

The climate in France is generally milder than the UK, allowing for a wider variety of plants to thrive. Many properties in France come with large gardens, providing ample space for various gardening activities. So if you’re looking for inspiration or information, take a look at our gardening page