Gardening jobs for July, courtesy of Doncaster’s own Yorkshire Flower Faffer

Let’s do the British thing and talk about the weather first!

Well we went from it chucking it down to full on baking sun didn’t we, (well a few days of it anyway) and despite all the rain we had this saw me having to turn on the irrigation for the flowers and run about like a loony watering by hand all the areas that are yet to be hooked up to the irrigation or that are too far away from a water source.

All just after a few days of better weather!

I don’t mind too much though, gets the steps in and keep me fit.

How are all your gardens fairing?

You should now be seeing the first glimpses of the Dahlias peeping their glorious heads, I have also had a few cosmos flowers showing up too, this year I have sown Cosmos Apricotta and Cosmos Xanthos (a yellow bloom) so I am excited to see how they get on in the field.

I threw all caution to the wind this year with the Sweet Pea sowing, starting some off in August and then direct sowing (lots) in spring.

They took an absolute age to get going due to the lack of sunshine, but now I have the most glorious, filled wall of sweetly scented magical blooms.

They are not the most profitable of flowers for me to grow as they don’t last too long in a vase, they are also fiddly and time consuming to maintain.

I cut off the clinging tendrils once they have secured themselves at the bottom as this then puts the energy into the flowers and you get longer stems.

If you cut them regularly i.e. daily, then you will also get more flowers from them. I use this as a form of meditation, and it is a beautiful and relaxing little moment of calm when the sun is setting, and you can use it as time to sort out your thoughts from the day.

Last month I talked about British Flowers Week and the workshops I was running; it was a great success and all the lovely ladies that came had a wonderful few hours walking around the flowers and then creating a beautiful spiral hand tie to take home with them.

It was a great time for me to explain the benefits of supporting and growing British flowers and how people can find their nearest local flower grower. Please do get in touch with me if you would like to know too. We consumed lots of tea and cake too which of course, is the proper British thing to do.

The workshops were so much fun that I have decided to run these monthly. You can find all details of these and all the autumn and dare I say, Christmas workshops that have been added too. It really wont be long until its here again so ‘Be Prepared’ is my motto.

You can find all the workshops HERE

There is always SO much to do in the garden as along with the bounty of flowers, fruit and veg we also do get the weeds in abundance, but I am really trying to spend some time actually enjoying the fruits of my labours, as we are here for a good time and not a long time aren’t we.

I have started to take a cuppa (or a wee glass of something stronger) over to the wildlife pond and just sit and breathe in the scents of the flowers and listen to the song of the wren and the beautiful blackbird, that I feel very fortunate to share the space with. I hope you get time to do this too, it really is important for our mental well-being.

After these peaceful moments and nature appreciation you can get back on it by looking forward to next year and sowing your biennial flowers, larkspur, foxgloves, sweet William, forget me nots and wallflowers.

Time now to cut lavender for drying, choosing newly opened flowers for the best fragrance, then hang up in a cool, dark place.

Giving your dahlias a liquid feed, I use a tomato feed and also my homemade nettle. Keep them well watered and tie the shoots of tall varieties to sturdy stakes as they grow.

It is a boring but necessary process, but hand weed borders often, this will prevent the weeds setting seeds and less problems next year.

Feed, water and deadhead your summer bedding regularly, especially those in pots, and hanging baskets. Feeding also applies to your Roses and don’t forget to dead head them regularly to encourage more flowers.

In your vegetable garden check your crops regularly for aphids and rub or wash them off straight away before they multiply. Water well and regularly, your thirsty plants such as celery, beans, courgettes and pumpkins.

Heavy crops of apples, pear and plum can be thinned out and be sure to remove any damaged or small fruits.

If you grow strawberries, you can now peg down any runners into new pots for more strawberry plants next year (fill a pot with compost, use a stick or metal garden pin/peg to secure the offshoot runner to the compost and it will take root, you can then cut the runner from the main plant once it has rooted).

Finally, don’t forget to pick your courgettes regularly so they don’t turn into massive marrows.

Happy growing, what a Jewel July truly is…a parting July poem for you as always

By George Meredith (1828-1909)

Blue July, bright July,Month of storms and gorgeous blue;Violet lightnings o’er thy sky,Heavy falls of drenching dew;Summer crown! o’er glen and gladeShrinking hyacinths in their shade;I welcome thee with all thy pride,I love thee like an Eastern bride.Though all the singing days are doneAs in those climes that clasp the sun;Though the cuckoo in his throatLeaves to the dove his last twin note;Come to me with thy lustrous eye,Golden-dawning oriently,Come with all thy shining blooms,Thy rich red rose and rolling glooms.Though the cuckoo doth but sing ‘cuk, cuk,’And the dove alone doth coo;Though the cushat spins her coo-r-roo, r-r-roo –To the cuckoo’s halting ‘cuk.’

Sweet July, warm July!Month when mosses near the stream,Soft green mosses thick and shy,Are a rapture and a dream.Summer Queen! whose foot the fernFades beneath while chestnuts burn;I welcome thee with thy fierce love,Gloom below and gleam above.Though all the forest trees hang dumb,With dense leafiness o’ercome;Though the nightingale and thrush,Pipe not from the bough or bush;Come to me with thy lustrous eye,Azure-melting westerly,The raptures of thy face unfold,And welcome in thy robes of gold!Tho’ the nightingale broods—’sweet-chuck-sweet’ –And the ouzel flutes so chill,Tho’ the throstle gives but one shrilly trillTo the nightingale’s ‘sweet-sweet.’

• Sally Robinson, (AKA The Yorkshire Flower Faffer) Born and bred in Doncaster and owner of Field Good Flowers, a British Seasonal Flower Grower in Hatfield.

Sally is an avid lover of nature, gardening, writing and art and is a mum to three rescue dogs, always passionate about sharing her love and knowledge of all that is mentioned with you and others willing to listen.

You can follow her journey here

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