Gardening Hints & Tips for the month

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 July and August are productive months in South Devon. The generally mild climate, relatively high humidity, and dry spells mean the focus is on watering efficiently, harvesting regularly, and preparing for autumn.

• Water deeply once or twice a week rather than little and often. This encourages deeper root growth.
• Harvest courgettes, beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, peas, beetroot, and potatoes regularly to keep plants producing.
• Feed tomatoes weekly with a high-potash fertilizer once the first fruits have set.
• Pinch out the side shoots of cordon tomatoes and remove lower leaves as fruits ripen to improve airflow.
• Sow succession crops such as:
  • Lettuce
  • Rocket
  • Radishes
  • Spring onions
  • Spinach (late August)
  • Oriental greens
• Plant out winter brassicas such as kale, sprouting broccoli, and winter cabbage if you haven't already.
• Keep hoeing on dry days to remove weeds before they seed.

• Pick raspberries, blackcurrants, gooseberries, blueberries, and early apples as they ripen.
• Net soft fruit if birds become a problem.
• Summer-prune trained apples and pears in late July or August.
• Cut out old raspberry canes after fruiting, tying in the new green canes.
• Feed strawberries after harvesting and remove old leaves if they're healthy enough to tidy up.

• Deadhead roses, dahlias, cosmos, sweet peas, and annuals regularly to encourage more blooms.
• Water containers daily during hot weather—they dry out much faster than garden beds.
• Feed hanging baskets and containers weekly.
• Divide bearded irises after flowering if they have become overcrowded.
• Take cuttings from:
  • Lavender
  • Penstemons
  • Salvias
  • Fuchsias
  • Pelargoniums (late August)

• Raise the mower height during dry weather to avoid stressing the grass.
• Leave grass clippings on the lawn occasionally if they're not too thick.
• Don't worry if the lawn turns brown—it usually recovers when rain returns.
• Avoid laying new turf until autumn.

• Trim hedges after checking carefully for nesting birds.
• Lightly trim lavender after flowering, but avoid cutting into old woody stems.
• Prune wisteria by shortening this year's long shoots to about five or six leaves.

South Devon can have surprisingly dry spells despite its reputation.

• Water early in the morning or late in the evening.
• Apply water directly to the roots.
• Mulch borders with compost or bark to conserve moisture.
• Use water butts to collect rainwater whenever possible.

• Keep bird baths topped up with fresh water.
• Leave a shallow dish of water for hedgehogs and insects.
• Avoid using pesticides where possible.
• Allow some flowers to go to seed for birds and beneficial insects.

• Plant autumn and winter salads.
• Apply green manure on empty vegetable beds.
• Order spring-flowering bulbs ready for autumn planting.
• Start thinking about dividing overcrowded perennials in September.
• Collect seeds from favourite flowers for next year.

• Powdery mildew on courgettes and roses during dry weather.
• Slugs and snails after rain.
• Tomato blight if warm, humid weather follows rainfall.
• Cabbage white caterpillars on brassicas.
• Vine weevils in pots and containers.

A South Devon garden often benefits from the county's long growing season, so crops such as tomatoes, chillies, runner beans, dahlias, and cosmos can continue performing well into September if conditions remain mild. Regular harvesting, feeding, and deadheading through July and August will help make the most of that extended season.