Facebook Instagram Twitter Youtube Pinterest
Contact Us
Book a FREE Consultation

What to plant in July

Depending on how the weather has been, we find that July in the garden will go one of two ways.  If it’s been warm and wet, everything seems to put on a growth spurt and you get lush, often floppy, foliage spilling out all over your borders and paths.  But, if it’s been drier, you might find that your early flowering plants have finished but your later flowering plants aren’t quite in full swing yet.  But isn’t that constant variety one of the joys of gardening?

We have two suggestions to help bring some flowers to your July garden.  Both are quite structural, so will provide height if you have floppy foliage, and both are in flower now to help fill that mid-summer gap.  They are Hemerocallis and Echinacea.  Here are their key facts.

Hemerocallis

Also known as the daylily because each individual bloom only lasts for one day, it gets its name from the Greek words ‘hemera’ meaning day and ‘kallos’ meaning beauty.  Just keep picking off the spent flowers as they finish to keep more flowers blooming.

Plant profile

  • Daylilies are a low maintenance perennial, will grow in most soils and are generally pest and disease-free.
  • They are suitable for borders or containers but prefer full sun.
  • They can be bought as bare-root plants early in the year or in pots throughout the year.
  • Keep them well-watered during dry weather but don’t feed (as this encourages leaves over flowers).
  • Other than dead-heading, leave the foliage to die back naturally to provide over-winter shelter for pollinators.
  • Divide every 3 to 5 years to keep your clump healthy and create new clumps. (See our blog here on how to do this: https://hambrooks.co.uk/dividing-herbaceous-perennials/)
  • Warning – all parts of Hemerocallis are toxic to cats if eaten.
Daylillies

Echinacea

Also known as the coneflower, Echinacea is loved by insects and birds, and research shows that it has a variety of medicinal properties for humans too.  Echinacea derives its name from the Greek word ‘ekhinos’ for hedgehog in reference to its spiky central cone.

Plant profile

  • A perennial plant with long-lived, daisy-like flowers that are excellent for cutting.
  • Prefers well-drained soil in full sun, will grow in borders or pots.
  • Will tolerate most soil types but will need watering if it is really dry.
  • Good resistance to strong winds and won’t need staking.
  • Available as potted plants or as packets of seed if you want to try growing from scratch.
  • Deadhead individual flowers to encourage new ones but leave flowers to turn into seeds in autumn for the birds.
  • Divide congested clumps in the autumn or spring to keep them healthy and create new plants.
  • Not toxic to humans or animals.
coneflower

Further reading this month:
Looking after your garden while you’re away – our tips here
Our advice on caring for your garden in dry weather
Suggestions for jobs in your garden this July