What to do in July

This is an exciting time of the year for me as I get to harvest all of the produce that I have tended for the past months.  My homeward journey back from my allotment always includes bags full of fresh produce.  I tend to be a little too enthusiastic when showing off my rewards to family and friends, but I am  proud of the final product after months of carefully tending the seeds, so why shouldn’t I brag a little?

Besides, they never say not to some free homegrown vegetables and always lick their lips at the superior taste!

Jobs to do………in July

• Ventilate the greenhouse, dampening down the floors to help control the heat.
• If you haven’t done so already, transplant winter brassicas.
• Water crops regularly now.  This is the time when crops rely on their water supply to swell most vegetables.  
• Keep on top of pest control.  The warmer humid weather encourages a vast amount of pests.  
• Don’t let the hoe sit idle.  Weeds are best dealt with on a sunny day so that they die in the sun.
• Continue to encourage beans and peas to climb around their supports, pinching out the tops when they have reached the top of their supports.  This encourages flower and fruit production rather than leafy growth.
• Thin herb seedlings and transplant the thinnings elsewhere.
• Harvest and dry a wide variety of fresh herbs to use later in the season.
• Stop tomatoes from producing more growth when at least 4 trusses of tomatoes have appeared.
• Keep harvesting your vegetables to encourage production. In some cases, the more you pick the more you get!
• Avoid thinning carrots during the day to prevent carrot root fly.
• Cover the curds of cauliflowers to prevent from sun scorch.
• Continue planting both plants and seeds to fill in any gaps.
• Keep adding both green and brown waste to the compost heap, turning regularly.
• Peg down the runners of strawberries to produce new plants for next year
• Continue to feed all plants, especially tomatoes and peppers.
• Make your own liquid fertilisers using nettles or comfrey leaves.
• Continue to thin seedlings to allow room for crops to grow successfully.
• Continue to sow catch crops such as radish or gem lettuce.

What to sow………Indoors

• Spring Onion
• Kohl Rabi
• Kale
• Autumn and Winter salads
• Spring Cabbages
• Calabrese
• French beans
• Runner beans
• Spinach
• Radish

What to sow………Outdoors

• Beetroot
• Calabrese
• Early Carrots
• Chinese Cabbage
• French Beans
• Kale
• Kohl Rabi
• Lettuce
• Pak Choi
• Peas
• Radish
• Rocket
• Runner Beans
• Spring Onion
• Turnips

What to plant………in July

• Winter Brassicas
• Leeks
• Chives
• Courgettes
• Kale
• Marrow
• Oregano
• Pak Choi
• Kohl rabi
• Lettuces
• Peas
• Runner Beans
• Tomatoes
• Sprouting broccoli
• Sweetcorn

Crops in season now

• Peas
• Beans
• Carrots
• Turnips
• Potatoes
• Spring onions
• Lettuces
• Chard
• Radish
• Kale
• Rhubarb
• Spinach
• Strawberries
• Raspberries
• Cherries
• Shallots
• Courgettes
• Broad Beans
• Shallots
• Garlic
• Onions

Happy sowin’

Debb

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