It’s mid-July and time to take inventory of what needs to be done in the garden. Some gardeners will be looking to start the fall garden, while others are content to let the summer season wind down in the autumn.
Care for mums. Mid-July is the last time to trim back fallblooming perennials, especially mums. Stems are growing, getting lanky, and soon will begin to flop over. Cut stems back by half. Cutting back the top growth will encourage side buds to develop. With more side buds, the bushes will be fuller and have more growing points for blossoms. If stems are not cut back, the blossoms will be limited to the end of the exiting branches and plants will appear sparse.
Prune spring blooming shrubs. Spring-blooming shrubs have finished their bloom season and tissues will soon be developing to produce next spring’s flowers. Shrubs that should be pruned now are forsythia, flowering quince, spirea and viburnum.
Take care of weeds. One weed left to spread its seed will propagate hundreds of baby weeds. Persistent weeding now will pay off next spring.
Trim spring bulbs. Iris seed stalks should be cut back to the origin. Do not cut back foliage while it is still green; the foliage is necessary to carry out photosynthesis for next year’s flowers. Day lily flower stalks should be cut back. Daffodil foliage will have died back and these can be cut back to soil level.
Feed plants. This has been an especially hard summer. With no to little rainfall and extreme temperatures, many plants have been watered just to keep them alive. Overwatering will leach out minerals and plants likely are becoming lighter green. Give plants a feeding with a liquid complete fertilizer. MiracleGro has two types, one for flowering crops and another for green foliage crops.
Deadhead annuals and perennials. Cut back spent flowers from annuals and perennials. Flowers that have matured and are setting seed will store carbohydrates in the seed, rather than make new leaves. For crops to continue to bloom throughout the summer, keep spent blooms cut back.
Spread mulch. Add organic mulch to gardens and flower beds to reduce evaporation and keep weeds down. Pine needles, pecan hulls, shredded bark are some of the options. As the plant material decomposes, organic matter is added back to the soil.
Ellen Peffley Harp, a retired professor of horticulture at Texas Tech University, writes about gardening for several Texas newspapers.
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