What Are Some Summer Gardening Tips?
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Every year when summer finally arrives it feels like we’ve waited forever for the long sunny days, time off from school, vacations, and gatherings by the pool. Don’t forget about the blooming beauty of our gardens. Summer gardening can seem overwhelming to some newbies who want all the beauty but don’t have the experience. Not to worry, Spring-Green, your neighborhood's top choice of lawn care specialist since 1977, has all the summer gardening tips you need. Whether you are an experienced gardener, or your experience level is “green,” this guide will help you enjoy a stunning garden this summer. Let’s get started, shall we?
Your Guide To A Glorious Summer Garden
Watering is essential for keeping your summer garden thriving during the hot, dry season. Of course, there is a tipping point and overwatering can lead to damage to your plants. Overwatering can lead to increased crabgrass, disease, and shallow rooting. We won’t even talk about the skyrocketing of your water bill or wasting a valuable resource part of things. To avoid overwatering, follow these best practices:
- The step on it test. Just because the temps are high and the summer days are hot doesn’t mean your grass needs watering. A good rule of thumb is to step on your lawn and see if it springs back. If so, it does not require hydration. If not, you’ll need to get the sprinklers or hoses ready. You can also utilize a soil moisture sensor which can show you the amount of moisture at the plant's roots and help you determine when your lawn truly does need watering.
- Cut it less. Is that music to your ears? Less lawn mowing the better, right? Well, no not really. We are simply suggesting you raise your lawnmower blade to keep longer grass blades that help to promote deeper root growth, resulting in a drought-resistant lawn, lowered rates of evaporation, and (bonus) fewer weeds.
- Timing matters. When you water your lawn is extremely important to its success. For example, watering in the early morning is a good time to prevent evaporation. Also, rainfall ebbs and flows during the summer months, so be sure to adjust your watering schedule accordingly.
Keeping pests at bay is critical to your summer garden’s success. One essential to your healthy garden this is summer is to focus on keeping the pests away, Depending on your region of the world, these pests could range from squirrels and rabbits to centipedes and birds. There are many environmentally-friendly options for keeping your variety of pests away and you can also explore beneficial insects that eat pests. For example, ladybugs and their larvae eat aphids, mealybugs, whiteflies, and mites. Other beneficial bugs include spiders, centipedes, ground beetles, dragonflies, and big-eyed bugs.
Weeding is like showing love to your summer garden. Weeds grow in the summer too, unfortunately. Mulching early is an effective way to avoid a weed takeover of your summer garden. If you add a layer of cardboard or newspaper below your mulch, you get added benefits such as weed control at a low cost and a more natural alternative to landscaping cloth – both of which eventually break down into the ecosystem. Of course, when weeds do rear their ugly heads, pulling them out while they are young will help keep them away.
More tips and best practices for your amazing summer garden.
- Harvest – If you have plants that bring your fruits and vegetables, be sure to harvest them regularly. The more you do, the more the plant will produce. The best time to harvest is in the morning, so enjoy the bounty from your garden as much as possible (and as frequently as possible).
- Mulch - Mulch offers more than just weed control. It also helps to keep moisture from evaporating, translating into less frequent watering. It can also offer the benefit of keeping the soil from getting too hot during the summer months.
- Fertilize – For a healthy and thriving summer garden, you should be fertilizing monthly. You’ll need to determine your soil’s needs and choose the right fertilizer that is safe for your plants and ecosystem.
- Clear – Raking and clearing away leaves is an important step to keeping disease away. Be sure to do this regularly to keep the harmful diseases away from your plants and shrubs.
- Compost. An indoor composter is an excellent way to support your summer garden. You simply place all the trimmings from the garden and the kitchen into your compost pile or an indoor composter and use this “waste” for the nutrition of your garden.
Spring-Green has been America’s neighborhood lawn care specialist since 1977 and is standing by to help you with your summer gardening goals. Just a phone call away, our team of pros can be ready to support your big projects, help you with maintaining your beautiful lawn and garden, or help you if problems arise.