The July Garden

We're in the depths of Winter here in the Southern Hemisphere, the wind is cold & biting & the skies grey & leaden......a day in the garden is the last thing on our minds, but there is soooo much to do. So rug up, tuck the iPod into your pocket, pull out the gardening gloves & let's go. It's time to prune the roses (if you live in a heavy frost zone however, you should wait until next month). July is the best time for planting those bare-rooted roses you've been drooling over in the catalogues, so get to it, just making sure your new beauties have a really sunny, well-drained spot to thrive in!

Now is a great time to plant the fruit trees you meant to last year, but never got around to. A peach or nectarine likes a warm, sunny sheltered spot away from the wind - just do it.

Give those big, woody fucshias are pretty severe cut-back & feed them up lightly.

The English Box in tub & planters will love you if you give them a light trim & tidy up now.

The same applies to any of their relatives you've hedged in the garden.

Hydrangeas desperately need your attention now so a good prune, cutting out the dead canes & opening up the centre of the plant is the go here. If you want blue flowers, you need to start adding the bluing powder every couple weeks until the Spring buds appear.

Plant your strawberry runners (from the Nursery or from last year's plants) & treat them to a light feed.

Dig up your Dahlia clumps. Carefully remove them from the garden, wash off the dirt & cut the tubers away with a sharp knife ensuring the eye remains in the tuber. Store them away in a box, making sure you've covered them well with damp sand or sawdust.

Cut back Summer & Autumn flowering perennials like your Daisies.

Feed your Spring bulbs......the Daffodils

.......and Hyacinths

.......and Ranuculus

.......and Freesias.

Divide those scrappy looking Agapanthus & replant - they may be the only colour you have in the garden at the height of the long, hot Summer!

If you've got a little energy left & it's still light, start thinking about your Summer vegie garden. Make sure your beds get a minimum of 6-7 hours of full sun each day. Weed out the beds & dig some organic matter/compost into the soil to begin your prep. Wander inside, put the kettle on, warm yourself by the fire - you've earnt it!! Happy gardening & if I've given you a bit of encouragement, please leave a comment & let us all know what you got up to in your garden this weekend.

Images: 1, 10, 14. Mooseys 2. Montvale 3. Wildflowers of Ireland 4. Greenery 5. Garden Express 6. Leslie Rich 7. Country Living 8. Rochester 9. Wikimedia 11. White Flower Farm 12. Easy To Grow Bulbs 13. Whole Blossoms 14. Beekman