John Hethrington has been gardening since the age of 9. He spent his early life gardening in Toronto and earned his certification as a Master Gardener before moving to Meaford where he cultivates 2.5 acres with 20 different gardens. He publishes monthly garden tips for local newsletters and his column will appear on CollingwoodToday.ca as well.
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Master Gardener John Hethrington offers the following tips for your gardens during the month of July.
- Watch for the Japanese beetle on your Lilies, Roses, Rose of Sharon, Dahlias, Hollyhocks, and numerous other plants. Handpicking and squeezing, combined with a beetle trap, are the most efficient way to limit these ravaging critters. Luckily, the little red devils don’t eat Day Lilies (Hemerocallis).
- Watch for earwigs and Gypsy moth caterpillars. Spray plants with a 40:1 mixture of water and dish soap.
- Ants are also a problem. The ant powder does not seem to work for me. Maybe the ants didn’t read the instructions to take it back to their nest.
- Trim evergreens, cedar hedges, etc., Now as needed, not later in the summer.
- Stake straggly annuals and perennials, or pinch them back to promote new growth.
- Raise lawn mower blades for summer mowing. (Grass should be at least 5 - 7.5 cm (2 to 3 inches) high to stay healthy and weed free.)
- Prune spring-flowering shrubs like Forsythia and Spirea after blooming, If you really want to be picky, remove individual spent lilac blooms.
- Water flower beds deeply and try a second round of weeding. Add mulch again to keep the weeds at bay.
- Mulch your tomato plants. When a ripe tomato drops, it won’t split or get muddy. Mulch holds moisture too!
- Thin, hoe, weed and water vegetables as required. (This is why I stick to flowers)
- Water lawns and beds as deeply as you can. May was a record-breaking no rain month. Now we get downpours in late June.
- Tackle weeds now before they go to seed.
- Stake tall perennials that may be weakened by rapid growth.
- Turn compost regularly and check the moisture level – not too wet, not too dry, like Goldilocks, just right.
A big thank you to everyone who turned out for our second COVID Plant Sale at St. George’s, the Anglican Parish for the Blue Mountains, in Clarksburg. You bought over 1,000 donated plants. Thanks to the many plant donors too!
Come to the Frog Hollow Garden Tour of my many different gardens on Saturday, July 31 (Civic Holiday Weekend). Proceeds to St. George’s church.
Pre-purchase your $20 tickets on line at www.froghollowgardentour.ca. to see our 2.5 acre Frog Hollow Gardens. It’s a safe, socially-distanced, self-guided, timed entry tour. Refreshments will be served.
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