July

Landscaping Tips for the Month of July

Chores and Maintenance:

• If rain is lacking, practice water-wise horticultural techniques
• Determine which plants are most important and water them first
• Water plants early in the day through drip irrigation or hand held hose with shut-off nozzle
• Re-apply mulch to plantings to help conserve moisture
• Allow lawns to go dormant; they will green up again when rain returns
• Continue to remove weeds which compete for water
• Continue to stake floppy plants and vines
• Mow lawns regularly to keep grass height at 3-4in.
• Continue to aerate and moisten compost pile to speed decomposition
• Continue to apply acid mulch to azaleas, rhododendrons, and other ericaceous ornamentals
• Apply a summer mulch to rose beds to preserve moisture and control weeds
• Deadhead annuals and perennials to encourage continuous bloom and cut back any rampant growth
• Continue to spray roses weekly with a baking soda fungicide (See June Tips for recipe)
• Remove any fallen leaves and debris which can harbor insect pests and disease organisms
• Pinch back asters and chrysanthemums one last time
• Finish deadheading rhododendrons and lilacs
• Continue to apply deer repellent

Planting:

• Continue to repot any houseplants as needed
• Continue to lift, divide, and propagate spring-flowering perennials
• Sow seed of lettuce, kale, broccoli, cabbage, radishes and arugula for fall harvest
• Sow seed of English daisy, forget-me-not and pansy now
• Continue to propagate shrubs from softwood cuttings
• Propagate spring-flowering perennials
• Propagate herbs from cuttings
• Continue transplanting container grown plants

Pruning/Fertilizing:

• Deadhead hybrid tea, grandiflora, floribunda, miniature, repeat-blooming shrub and climbing roses
• Prune climbing roses after flowering
• Prune and thin large shade trees to increase light for lawns and planting beds
• Prune evergreens, and deciduous and evergreen hedges into early summer
• Prune all raspberry canes which have completed fruiting to the ground
• Fertilize broad-leaved flowering evergreen shrubs with topdressing of oakleaf compost/and or cottonseed meal
• Fertilize needle evergreens with acid type fertilizer
• Fertilize roses
• Continue to fertilize annuals and container plants each month
• Fertilize chrysanthemums every 2-3 weeks until buds form
• Fertilize vegetables
• Leave nitrogen-rich grass clippings on lawn