Summer is a wonderful time to get out into the garden. With the weather improving and seasonal plants blooming, now is the perfect time to get a headstart on your summer gardening tasks and maintenance for your outdoor space. We’ve compiled a list of our essential gardening and outdoor maintenance tasks for summer. From weeding to watering, here’s everything to add to your to-do list as we move into summer.
Weeding
Alongside your beautiful flowers and plants, weeds also tend to come out to play when the sunshine hits. You may need to rid your garden of summer weeds every day or every other day to keep them at bay. Whether you’re weeding by hand or busting out the garden tools, little and often is a key technique for ridding your garden of those pesky fast-growing weeds. Although weeds are often inevitable, especially as the weather gets warmer, there are a few ways to help slow the growth of weeds. This includes, applying mulch, using weed mats, and cultivating the soil (preparing the soil for sowing or planting).
Mowing
The British summer often comes with as much rain as it does sunshine, if not more. While not so promising for the BBQs and garden parties you’ve planned, your plants and grass will love it!
Your lawn may grow quicker in the lead up to, and throughout, summer, so get your lawnmower prepared. Be sure not to cut the grass too short, though, as this can dehydrate your lawn and cause a browner appearance. For an environmentally friendly option, consider the range of Worx Landroid robotic mowers to take care of the mowing for you and free up your time for other tasks. Uniquely configurable and always up-to-date, the Landroid can be customised to suit your lawn’s needs.
Fertilising
Applying fertiliser before the height of summer should give your plants a boost. Evenings and cloudy days are perfect for applying spring/summer fertiliser, as fertiliser doesn’t do well in direct heat/sunlight.
Pruning
Prune those lovely shrubs that flowered over spring to keep them looking neat and aesthetically pleasing. Light pruning year-round, but especially after recent blooms, “encourages steady growth and builds a healthy plant.”
Deadheading
In addition to pruning, deadheading your plants will give them a boost and encourage more blooms. Your annual and perennial plants “will bloom more if you snip away spent flowers,” keeping your garden looking healthy and tidy.
Watering
Some say that early morning is the best time to water your plants in the summer, as they’ll have a supply of water to get them through the day’s heat and will no longer be damp as the nighttime arrives. If you don’t want to water your plants every single day, you can also get away with watering 2-3 times per week using plenty of water.
Harvesting
It’s time to think about when to harvest your fruits and vegetables. From basil to green onions, there are plenty of delicious fruits and veg that come into season in the early summer. If you have an especially bountiful harvest this year, some of your crops can be frozen to prolong their life.
Cleaning
Get your patio sparkling before the garden parties begin! Now is a good time to get a headstart on cleaning your decking, fencing, patio furniture, outdoor shed, and any other areas that may be a little dirty or dusty. Make tough work easy, use a portable pressure cleaner to make sure your patio is truly sparkling clean.