Garden Notes for July 2025.

July is a good time to propagate Begonia rex if you have a favourite plant with those wonderful leaves.  Well developed leaves should be slit across the veins and laid on the surface of a mixture of sand, peat and loam in a propagating frame or box with some heat (from soil cables).

A small amount of a general purpose fertiliser sprinkled between onion rows in the second week of July will help to increase the size of the bulbs for harvesting.

Keep up a succession of lettuce and salad onion sowings.  But if you do, make sure that the temperature for the lettuce seed is not over 20 Centigrade – otherwise it will not germinate.  Once germinated, bring the plants into a well lit place, but not direct sunlight, and warmth.

If we have had a reasonable season, towards the end of July wallflowers seedlings, Sweet William and other biennials should be ready for transplanting.  The seedlings should be pricked out 9” apart in rows 9 to 12” apart in good soil with an open situation so that they can make strong plants.

Again towards the end of July you should remove the last of the king fruit on apple trees.  ‘King’ fruit are the ones in the centre of each cluster, they seldom have as good shape as the others.

Keep an eye out for Cabbage White butterfly caterpillar infestations, especially on cabbages, and other members of the brassica family.  Primula auricula are also prone to attack by these pests.

The end of July is the best time to gather herbs of all kinds for drying.  Tie the shoots, or leaves, in small bundles and suspend them head down in a cool airy shed or room.  Keep them out of direct sunlight for preference.

Early in the month dig up and divide dwarf and intermediate bearded irises if they have been undisturbed for 3 or more years.  Tall bearded irises should be treated in a similar way towards the end of the month.

Watch out for the lily beetle.  If you see any sign of damage, and apply an appropriate treatment.  The beetle itself is a rather fetching shade of red, but it is their orange-red larvae that hide beneath the leaves that will do the damage.

The Summer Show is on Saturday 16th August.  Everyone is encouraged to ‘have a go’.  Do try to enter with your exhibit.  It is great fun and well worth the effort.

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