Dead head plants regularly to keep them looking good and make their flower display last longer.
Don’t forget to keep watering newly planted plants, because until they have established a good root system their roots will be shallow rooted and small.
Prune early summer flowering shrubs such as Philadelphus and Weigela. Cut back flowered growth to a strong lower shoot and thin out up to a fifth of old, woody stems.
Carry on checking climbers, and tie in where necessary.
Now is the time to plant autumn flowering bulbs such as Nerine, Colchicum and Autumn crocus. Cut back hardy geraniums and delphiniums after first flowers to encourage a second flush, give them a feed afterwards.
Low, carpet growing plants, that are sparce in the centre can be in-filled with gritty compost to encourage new growth. Give dahlias a liquid feed, tie in shoots from tall varieties.
Pinch out climbing beans when they reach the top of their supports. Keep tomatoes well watered to prevent blossom end rot.
Raise the height of the mower blade to keep the lawn greener for longer if we have not had rain. Apply early biological control against chafer grubs in the lawn, if the soil is not dry, or treat in August or early September.
Hi Mr Wellington, Chandler’s Ford’s own Percy Thrower
As far as I understand there are no legally permitted chemical controls for chafer grubs just the use of nematodes – not much help if you have a large lawn – and very expensive and hit-and-miss.
For a year, I covered my lawn with 300 children’s windmills to deter the crows from digging in search of the grubs. The crows haven’t been near the place since! My golf course (Royal Winchester) is under permanent attack by crows and the fairways and tees are disfigured in places. I would shoot them but I understand that Chris Packham was a major instigator in banning that practice. What biological solution is available to us?
Dear Robbie,
Many thanks for your email, it is always nice to see that my articles are read.
You are quite right that there is no chemical control for chafer grubs, and nematode use on a large lawn would indeed be expensive.
I love the idea of your lawn with 300 children’s windmills on it to deter the crows from making a mess of your lawn, and by the sounds of it this method has worked for you.
Looking in to this a bit more for you, the RHS say that “Less heavily managed lawns are thought to be more susceptible to damage, so attention paid to feeding, watering and moss prevention may help avoid damaging populations”.
Also, a ‘physical ‘ control that can be tried is to water infested areas on the lawn in the evening, then cover with black plastic over night, then at the crack of dawn tip toe outside and remove the plastic covering and allow the birds to feast on the grubs which hopefully had moved to the surface of the lawn.
Hope this answers your question Robbie.
Wellie (Ms)
(More Charlie Dimmock than Percy Thrower )
Hi, Helen-in-Wellingtons,
I would need several hundred bin bags to cover my lawn if I tried this! When I built my house in Hiltingbury the neighbours politely informed me that I wouldn’t be able to grow a lawn – ‘We successfully grow moss here’, I was told. Against these odds, which were like a red rag to a bull, I have created lawns which the Groundsman at Wimbledon would be impressed with.
I use organic lawn fertilisers containing bacteria which eat the dead moss and thatch and I proudly recommend them to everyone who passes comment. Without beating about the bush – Viano products, including Mo Bacter (recommended by the RHS) and Recovery, are superb and deserve to be named.
Incidentally, we gave away hundreds of the windmills to young children passing by with their parents during the three lockdowns, which gave great joy to everyone.