WAHGA Jobs for July

June was hot, dry and quite windy, so not great weather conditions for plants of any type.  July has started much the same. Hampton Court flower show was extremely hot and Wimbledon will be selling a lot of strawberries and cream!    A couple of cooler days have given some respite, but with more hot days forecast, don’t forget your sunhat and suncream!

WATERING & WEEDING:

It’s best to water in the early morning or evening to reduce the effects of evaporation.  Water close to the ground and not on the foliage.  When watering with a watering can, only use the rose on seeds and seedlings and the spout for everything else.  Mulching around larger plants such as courgette, squash and fruit bushes will help retain water and reduce the frequency of watering.

Try and keep on top of the weeds to reduce competition for water, nutrients and light.  Hoe weeds when they are small, on a hot, dry day they can be left to wither as they won’t re-root.  Remember to cut back any tall grasses to prevent them from going to seed. 

SOWING & PLANTING:

Keep successional sowing:

• Beetroot

• Carrots

• Radishes

• Spring onions

• Mange tout

• Leafy greens such as lettuce, rocket, spinach

Plant out:

• Chard

• Brassicas - cauliflower, sprouts, kale, cabbages

• Beans

• Leeks

• Tomatoes, chillies, peppers, aubergine

  
  

Inter-sow spring onions and radish between lettuce and other leafy salad crops.

HARVESTING;

• Peas, mange-tout

• The first French beans are ready, and runner beans will be ready to pick soon

• New potatoes 

• Beetroot, carrots, spring onions

• Onions, shallots and garlic (don't pull them out - lift them from underneath)

• Summer fruit - raspberries, all currants, usually gooseberries  - but I’ve picked mine already.

• Plums

• Leafy greens - lettuce, rocket, chard, spinach

MANAGE PESTS & DISEASES:

• Slugs and snails - look for daytime hidey-holes and hand pick

• All brassicas need fine netting to protect them from cabbage white butterflies, and pigeons, which will eat brassicas to  ground level.  Leeks need protecting from leek moth. 

• Cover soft fruit plants with netting to protect from birds before any signs of ripening.  Summer fruiting raspberries need netting, but autumn fruiting can be left uncovered.

• Watch out for signs of powdery mildew or disease on fruit trees and bushes.  The best way to manage is to space the plants well.

KEEP TENDING:

Tomatoes need regular feeding as well as watering.   Pinch out side shoots; any large ones will easily root if pushed into some compost giving some free plants!  Stake the plants as they grow, and pinch the tops out when they have 4 or 5 trusses of fruit.

Sweetcorn, broccoli and sprouts may need earthing up for stability, they still have a way to go before harvest time. 

Courgettes may need leaves pruning as they have a tendency to get mildew.  Fewer, well-spaced plants will produce more courgettes than many plants close together.

Chard is unlikely to bolt, but other leafy veg including lettuce, rocket, spinach and brassicas are prone to bolting in dry, hot weather.  Regular watering is essential to avoid this. Mulching helps, and these green veg will cope in partial shade.

OTHER:

With the hot weather, compost develops more quickly, so compost all your green matter, add foliage, leaves and annual weeds to your compost pile, turn the pile to help activate it, and make sure it doesn’t dry out.  Comfrey and nettles not only make a good nutritious ‘tea’ for plants, they also act as compost accelerant.

IN THE GARDEN:

• Avoid planting out any bought plants until the weather is cooler unless you can guarantee regular watering over the next 6-8 weeks.  We don’t know how long this hot spell will last.  

• Lawns are struggling, avoid cutting the lawn in dry spells, and always cut ‘high’ at this time of year. 

• Feed you pots, planters and hanging baskets on regular basis and keep dead-heading to help prolong the flowering period.

WILDLIFE:

• Leave dishes of fresh water out for and for the bees and the birds. 

  
  

• Try and create shady, damp areas in the garden with stacks of logs at the back of the beds and borders, an area with leaf piles, perhaps a wildlife pond for newts, toads and frogs. Bird and bat boxes can be put up at any time of year. 

  
  

• Hedgehogs are susceptible to fly strike at this time of year.  If you see them wandering around in the daytime that is a bad sign, and if in any doubt, please contact Wildlife Aid in Leatherhead.  If you have found an injured wild animal, please visit the Emergency Helpline hub or call Wildlife Aid on 01372 360404. 

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