BBC Gardeners’ World presenter Monty Don has shared a key July gardening task on his blog to encourage fresh regrowth and beautiful blooms this autumn.
Monty Don has shared vital July gardening advice(Image: BBC Studios)
With summer well and truly under way across Britain, gardeners throughout the UK are undoubtedly tackling essential tasks to ensure their outdoor spaces are sufficiently prepared for the colder autumn and winter months ahead.
Those hoping to guarantee their gardens produce stunning displays and gorgeous blooms during autumn are being encouraged to complete one critical gardening job this July, according to the nation’s most beloved horticultural authority.
Renowned horticulturist and BBC Gardeners’ World presenter Monty Don is widely regarded as Britain’s most celebrated gardener, and his personal cottage garden — Longmeadow, situated in Herefordshire’s Ivington village — is considered amongst the finest and most distinguished in the country.
Amongst the many things Monty Don is celebrated for, providing simple and efficient gardening advice via his personal blog stands out as particularly valued by enthusiasts.
Monty Don is Britain’s most famous gardening expert(Image: PA)
Over the course of his career, the horticultural expert has shared a wealth of tips and guidance for passionate gardeners — and there’s one particular task he’s encouraging green-fingered enthusiasts to tackle this July in order to achieve magnificent blooms come autumn, reports the Express.
Reflecting on the pleasures of July, Monty writes on his personal gardening blog: “The vegetable garden in July has lots of salad leaves, peas, beans, new potatoes, beetroot, garlic, carrots and artichokes, cucumbers, courgettes and tomatoes.
“We harvest basil by the trug load and make pesto to eat fresh and to freeze, storing that lovely oily taste of summer for the dark winter evenings. “
Painting a picture of what Longmeadow looks like in July, the celebrated horticulturist reveals: “The rhubarb and asparagus have their last picking at the beginning of the month and then are left to grow freely so goodness can be fed back to the roots to provide next spring’s bounty. Soft fruit is at its best with strawberries, summer raspberries, gooseberries, black and red currants – all ready for harvest.
Early flowering perennials need to be cut back in July for vibrant autumn blooms(Image: Getty)
July’s key gardening task
Monty Don advises: “Early flowering perennials such as oriental poppies, delphiniums and hardy geraniums such as G. phaeum, should all be cut back to the ground to encourage fresh regrowth and repeat flowering in a couple of months’ time.”
He continues to outline how this “creates space for tender annuals and perennials in the border”. The Gardeners’ World host adds: “Remove all cut material to the compost heap, weed around the base of the plants, water if necessary and do not plant too close to them so that they have light and space to regrow and flower again at the end of summer.”
It’s not solely flowering plants requiring attention during July, with the gardening expert also offering vital advice regarding hedges: “By the end of the month birds have all fledged and left their nests, so hedge cutting can begin, bringing back a crispness to the garden that restores a sense of vitality and provides a framework for late-summer shagginess in the borders.”
According to Monty, the majority of wild flower meadows can be safely cut back by the end of July. The horticulturist notes that the most crucial step is to “remove all the grass, raking up every last piece to compost, so that it will not enrich the grass and thus limit next year’s wild flower display.”
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