Make Your Garden a Slice of Heaven This Summer

Summer, particularly a hot summer, is perfect for spending time outdoors and revelling in the beauty of your garden. However, don’t forget to give it some love and attention at the same time. In particular, be “water-wise” and look after the parts of your garden that run the risk of drying out in the sun.

Tubs and hanging baskets are often out of the reach of rain, while grown up container plants can shrug it off without absorbing enough, so will need you to do the watering for them. Veg and salad beds need to be checked to ensure they don’t dry out, as do fruit trees and any plants growing in a greenhouse, while roses and shrubs will need regular watering, preferably a once-a-week soaking. However, there is much in the garden that won’t need much watering, if any. Established trees and shrubs will look after themselves, while the lawn will be fine if it turns a little brown, although if you don’t cut it too closely, it’ll stay green for longer.

As summer marches on, it’s very important to keep hoeing weeds or they’ll compete with crops for any available moisture - and the weeds always win. Most of all, please enjoy the summer and happy gardening!

Tips for summer gardening:

• Be water-wise, especially in areas affected by drought
• Hoe weeds regularly
• Position summer hanging baskets and containers outside
• Cut lawns at least once a week
• Plant out summer bedding
• Prune many spring-flowering shrubs
• Shade greenhouses to keep them cool and prevent scorching

Alan's Seasonal Recommendation

BUY THE Alan Titchmarsh Extending Ratchet Loppers NOW

In this clip Alan Titchmarsh gives us a demonstration of his ratchet loppers, part of his English-style range of tools, which is available to buy at Gardeners' Heaven.

Alan Titchmarsh comments, "Bulldog Tools have an enviable reputation synonymous with high quality skills and craftsmanship as the top priority. My new range holds true to this testament, due to the high specification of the steel used in the forging process and durable Ash wood shafts creating a robust and reliable tool."