To keep weeds to a minimum, hoe borders regularly
Watering is essential. The best time to do this is in the early evening when it is cooler and when less evaporation will occur
Pinch out sideshoots on tomatoes
Harvest vegetable including lettuce, raddish and early potatoes
Position summer hanging baskets and containers outside
Plant out summer bedding and half hardy annuals. Mid month, feed bedding annuals with a liquid feed such as Miracle-Gro Liquid Feed
Feed roses with a good granular fertiliser such as Toprose.
Stake tall or floppy plants
Prune Spring flowering shrubs
The lawn will require cutting weekly. If you have used chemicals on your lawn do not add the grass cuttings to the compost heap.
To speed up the composting process in the compost heap damp it down with water if it dries out
To improve the quality of strawberries lay straw around them and feed with a high potash food and ensure that they are watered well during dry spells
Shade greenhouses to prevent plants scorching and in hot weather open the vents and dampen the floor to cool and humidifyTo control white fly in the greenhouse, grow extra basil in pots, and once well covered with the pest, remove and dispose of the plant
Use shade paint or green house shading netting on the greenhouse glass to prevent overheating and scorching of tender plants
Feed plants at least once a week
Use a biological control or fumigate if pests in the greenhouse are a problem
Open the vents every day to allow circulation for the of air
Remove side shoots from tomatoes, not the bush varieties
Continue training and feeding cucumbers and melons
Pick male flowers from cucumbers and pollinate female flowers
Top up bird feeders and put out food on the ground and bird tables
Keep the bird bath topped up in the heat
Trim hedges less frequently to allow wildlife to shelter and feed
Leave nesting birds undisturbed in garden shrubs and hedges
Put up a bat nesting box
Put out food for hedgehogs. Do not put out bread and milk; dog food is better for them, but not chicken varieties.
Use wildlife friendly slug pellets if chemical slug control is needed
Leave roses that produce hips without dead-heading them
Mow spring flowering meadows once bulb foliage has died down
Mow recently established perennial meadows to control weeds
Leave annual meadows un-mown
Continue to feed pond fish
Remove blanket weed by twirling around a stick
Check for blocked pump filters and clean out
Tidy up bog gardens
Thin out, cut back or divide excessive new growth on aquatic plants. Feed large aquatic plants by inserting slow-release fertiliser tablets well below soil level around the base of the plant
Keep ponds and water features topped up
Once new planting has established start to stock new fish ponds with fish. Start stocking and feeding when the water is warm. Don’t leave fish sitting in plastic bags of water – put them in the pond as soon as possible so that they have sufficient oxygen
Avoid introducing goldfish into the wildlife pond, as they will upset the pond’s natural balance.
Cover or use safety grills on ponds in gardens where young children play
