To Do's
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July Garden Calendar by B. Rosie Lerner, Purdue Consumer Horticulturist |
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Indoor Plants and Activities:Keep an eye on houseplants that have been set outdoors. They need more water than they needed indoors and can dry out rapidly in hot, summer breezes.Condition flowers cut from the garden for arranging by removing lower leaves, placing cut stem ends in warm water, and storing overnight in a cool location. Propagate houseplants by taking cuttings from vigorously growing plants. Place cut end in rooting media, such as perlite, vermiculite or peat moss soil mix. Enclose in plastic and keep out of direct sunlight. |
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Lawns, Woody Ornamentals and Fruits:Do not plant bare-root or ball-and-burlap stock at this time of year. Container-grown plants still may be planted, but only if you keep them well-watered.Keep newly established plants watered during dry weather. New plants should receive 1 to 1.5 inches of water every 7 to 10 days. Allow water to penetrate deeply into soil rather than sprinkling frequently and lightly. Apply a mulch around young plants to help conserve soil moisture and control weeds. Continue fruit tree spray program to keep diseases and insects under control. Prop up fruit tree branches that are heavily loaded with fruit. Remove water sprouts (sprouts from the trunk) and suckers (sprouts from the roots) from fruit trees. Many trees are plagued by "lawn-mower blight." Be careful to avoid nicking tree trunks while mowing or trimming. When watering lawns, apply 1 to 1.5 inches of water in a single application per week. Frequent, light sprinklings will encourage roots to stay shallow, making them more susceptible to drought. Bluegrass is a cool-season plant and is under great stress during hot, dry summers. If water is not applied, the bluegrass will become dormant and will turn brown until more favorable conditions arrive in autumn. Mow grass .5 inch higher than usual during the dry summer months to help conserve soil moisture. Don’t remove clippings from the lawn unless grass is excessively tall or weedy. Clippings return some nutrients to the soil and do not add to thatch buildup. Pinch off faded rose blossoms. Continue rose spray program to control insects and diseases. |
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Flowers, Vegetables and Small Fruits:Supplement natural rainfall if any, to supply 1 to 1.5 inches of water per week in a single application.Harvest summer squash while small and tender for best quality. Standard sweet corn is at its peak for only a day or so. The newer Supersweet corn maintains its peak quality for a longer period. Harvest when silks begin to dry and kernels exude a milky, rather than watery or doughy, juice when punctured. Broccoli forms edible side shoots after the main head is removed. Mulch garden, especially young plants, to control weeds and help conserve soil moisture. Make sure potato tubers, carrot shoulders, and onion bulbs are covered with soil to prevent development of green color and off flavors. Applying a layer of mulch helps keep them covered. Allow blossoms on newly planted everbearing strawberry plants to develop for a fall crop. Renovate June-bearing strawberry plants immediately after harvest by mowing or cutting the leaves off just above the crown of the plant. Narrow the matted rows and remove excess plants, leaving the young, more vigorous ones. July is a good month to fertilize strawberries with one-half of a pound of actual nitrogen per 100 feet of row. Harvest raspberries when fully colored and easily separated from stem. Then, after harvesting is complete, prune the fruiting canes to make room for new growth. Start seeds of broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts to transplant later for a fall harvest. Harvest crops such as tomatoes, squash, okra, peppers, beans and cucumbers frequently to encourage further production. Complete succession planting of bush beans and sweet corn. You can safely remove the foliage of spring-flowering bulbs after the foliage fades. This is also a good time to lift the bulbs for transplanting or propagation. Remove faded blossoms from annual and perennial flowers to prevent seed formation. --From Plants & Pests, Purdue University |
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