Get Your Garden Ready For Summer with Birmingham Botanical Gardens

Get Your Garden Ready For Summer with Birmingham Botanical Gardens

The weather’s heating up and it’s the ideal month for spending time outside in the garden say the horticultural team at Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

In fact, with June 21 being the longest day of the year, you can expect to see an energetic growth spurt in your garden as it soaks up the extra daylight.

Now that frosts are a thing of the past, houseplants can be placed outdoors for the summer. However, it is really important not to put them straight into full sun, as it will cause leaf scorch. Put them in a shady space to give them ‘fresh air’ and let the great British summer wash the leaves of dust. As a rule, hairy leaved plants such as Streptocarpus hate water on their leaves, so keep these inside in a shady room.Remember to bring in any houseplants placed outside for the summer back inside in September, before the return of autumn frosts.
Although your garden is likely to be bursting with colour, the weeds will be out in full force, too. Keep these interlopers at bay by hoeing the borders regularly, particularly on the warmer days.

As for your lawn, leave the grass slightly longer than desired during the warmer weather because longer blades of grass can cope better with drought. However, even if we do have a dry spell, it isn’t necessary to water the grass, unless it has been recently sown or newly laid turf, because it will soon recover when the rain returns.

However, it is important to water vegetable patches liberally because the heat can dry them out, which could cause the plants to bolt.

If you haven’t already done so, now is the perfect time to sow runner beans. When you do, dig a trench and put in a generous amount of water retentive material because the beans will need a constant supply of water to help them grow. You’ll also need to water hanging baskets regularly because they can dry out very quickly when it’s warm. We’ll be tending to ours, which are full of Calibrachoa @Cabaret Hot Pink’ and Acalypha Pendula Mini Red.’ and moss collected from the American Bank in the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, daily.
Most of your houseplants can go outside for the summer – the fresh air and rain will do them the world of good. Make sure they are in a shady spot to reduce the chance of leaf scorch and bring them back inside in late September before the frosts return.

Feeling motivated? Why not visit Birmingham Botanical Gardens for more inspiration.

Westbourne Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham. B153TR
www.birminghambotanicalgardens.org.uk

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