Latest news with #summerblooms
The Sun
11-07-2025
- Climate
- The Sun
The best location for hydrangeas to flower all summer long and how to revive floppy blooms & crispy petals
HYDRANGEAS can bloom beautifully all summer – but only if they're planted in the right spot, experts have revealed. And as temperatures rise to 32C, knowing exactly where to place these show-stopping shrubs could be the difference between lush flowers and a drooping disaster. 2 In the UK, gardeners are being urged to put hydrangeas somewhere they'll receive morning sun and afternoon shade, ideally close to a building or wall. That's because the spot helps them thrive while also protecting them from extreme heat and unpredictable spring frosts. Ann Marie, a gardening writer, said that hydrangeas 'often grow best next to a building or wall where the radiated heat helps safeguard new growth from frosts in spring." However, she warned: 'It's important to make sure the soil doesn't get too dry in summer." With temperatures expected to soar to 31C this week and a yellow heat health alert in place across England, it's more important than ever to keep these blooms hydrated and sheltered. For those keen to keep their hydrangeas bright blue, Ann Marie has a clever soil tip. She explained: 'The flower colour of hydrangeas depends strongly on soil pH, so to keep those blooms a lovely vibrant blue it's essential to grow them in acidic soil or compost below pH6.2.' And it doesn't have to cost the earth. She added: 'Used coffee grounds make a great moisture-retentive, weed-suppressing mulch that shouldn't raise the pH.' I tried 'magic' Lidl garden hose - you need to get it, it's perfect for summer Meanwhile, over on social media, a flurry of advice has been shared by green-fingered fans trying to revive bargain-bin hydrangeas with sad, floppy stems. One Facebook user posted: 'Looking for advise please, I bought this yesterday reduced hoping to revive it – any ideas please?' Fellow gardeners were quick to offer their tried-and-tested methods. One replied: 'Keep it in the shade and soak it in a container of water.' Another suggested: 'Water the roots – soak them for a good 20 minutes but not the flowers.' A third added: 'I bought one reduced last year from B&M …I snipped off the dried dead bits, soaked the root ball for an hour, repotted with John Innes and put it in a light but shady location. "It's now thriving and grown so much.' Another fan favourite trick included: 'Dig a hole and water the hole. Mix in bonemeal – you can get it at the garden centre or Proper Job. "They thrive on it. Don't overwater, but soak before planting.' It comes as flower fans were also wowed by a TikTok from Miller Flowers, a popular duo of flower farmers who've gone viral for their blooming clever tips. Their top three pieces of advice are simple but effective: water well, position wisely, and feed carefully. They recommend watering hydrangeas three times a week for ten minutes – especially vital during the summer heat. For those in pots, a little less water is needed, but consistency is key. The sisters say: 'Hydrangeas are plants that love water,' and remind gardeners to water at the base, not over the flower heads. When it comes to where you plant them, they back up Ann Marie's tip: hydrangeas do best with morning sun and afternoon shade. This balance allows them to get the light they need to grow, but also avoid drying out in harsh heat. A little fertiliser can help them bloom longer, but too much can do more harm than good – especially if it leads to pests targeting their soft leaves. They recommend watering established hydrangeas three times a week for ten minutes at the base – especially vital in the summer heat. Plants in pots may need a little less, but keeping a consistent routine is key to healthy growth. Positioning also plays a part. 'Hydrangeas need both sun and shade,' the sisters say, echoing what UK experts have advised. A spot with morning sunlight and afternoon shade helps them grow strong without getting scorched. Feeding the plants can also help in warmer climates. A balanced fertiliser can boost flower production, but the sisters warn not to overdo it, as too much can attract pests and weaken the plant. July gardening jobs The Sun's Gardening Editor Veronica Lorraine, has shared the tasks you need to tackle this July in your garden. 1. Prune Wisteria You should only prune back Wisteria twice a year - and July - or mid summer - is one of those times. After flowering cut back long side shoots to around seven or six leaves. 2. Pinch out tomatoes Your tomatoes should be really picking up - so pinch out all the side shoots without flowers - and remove all the leaves that are shading the tomatoes - this will give them maximum light and energy. 3. Keep weeding Hand weeding and hoeing the surface of the soil will keep your weeds under check. 4. Feed Dahlias To keep Dahlias flowering until Autumn, you must keep feeding them weekly with a liquid fertliser high in potassium - which encourages blooms. 5. Keep deadheading plants Keep up with deadheading your bedding plants and perennials - so they keep coming back for the season. With roses make sure you're deadheading back to a set of five leaves, giving you the best chance of them flowering again. 6. Check on your pond If you're lucky enough to have a pond - make sure it's clear of algae, which can really bloom when the sun beats down. 7. Feed your lawn Whether that's with a liquid feed or granules. If you've chosen granules try to get them down before the rain comes, so they soak into the soil. 8. Tend to strawberry plants Cut the leaves off strawberry plants after you've picked them - leaving the crown untouched - which should help with next years fruit. 9. Sow extra seeds July weather is a great time to sow seeds as the warm soil and sunshine is great for germination. Try carrots, winter broccoli and other brassicas. 10. Move young plants into soil Get any young plants you've got left in the greenhouse - like courgettes - into the soil. 2
Irish Times
07-06-2025
- General
- Irish Times
How to keep your garden blooming all summer long
Glittering with beauty and laden with promise, the garden in early June is like a table sumptuously set for a glamorous dinner party, repaying all the hours of hard work behind the scenes. If you, for example, pruned and fed your roses to textbook perfection at the beginning of the year, the reward right now is their bounteous, beautiful, scented blooms. Likewise, if you forced yourself reluctantly outdoors to plant seed potatoes back in the damp, icy months of spring, then these plants should already be forming tasty tubers deep beneath the soil. Similarly, if you got young sweet pea plants into the ground back in late March to early April, then they'll be readying themselves to throw out their first delicate, perfumed blooms. It's a similar story for all those tender plants and baby seedlings that we gardeners have coddled through frosty nights and studiously protected from slug damage. Ditto for the summer-flowering bulbs and hardy biennials planted in the muck and mist of last autumn, including alliums, Dutch irises, sweet William, and Canterbury bells now coming into bloom. And ditto for all those summer-flowering herbaceous perennials laboriously lifted and divided what feels like so many moons ago, now starting to lustily flower their hearts out. Summer-flowering bulbs and hardy biennials planted last autumn are readying themselves to throw out their first delicate, perfumed blooms, including alliums (pictured), Dutch irises and sweet William. Photograph: Mint Images/Getty What comes next, however, is the challenge of keeping this very beautiful show on the road. Try to make it a routine, for example, to deadhead faded flowers daily, a simple task that prevents flowering plants from switching their energies to seed production rather than blooming. Likewise, don't presume that rainy weather will be enough to keep summer pots and container-grown plants sufficiently irrigated, especially as their leafy canopy increases over the coming weeks, preventing enough water from reaching their thirsty root systems. Instead, check them every day, sticking your index finger at least 5cm into the compost to accurately gauge if it's sufficiently damp. READ MORE Check the compost's weight too. If it feels light, then there's a risk that the compost is only surface-damp – bad news for plants' probing root systems. If in doubt, fill a wheelbarrow with water, plunge the pot up to its waist, and leave to soak for several hours. This same technique is also a great way to deep-feed plants with a liquid solution of seaweed, a brilliant natural health tonic that helps to boost plant vigour, floriferousness and productivity. The latter is also very effective applied as a foliar feed every 10-14 days throughout the summer, using a watering can or spray. Ireland's variable summer weather poses challenges. It's at this time of year, for example, that many fast-growing herbaceous plants become vulnerable to wind damage The same goes for homemade 'nettle tea' and 'comfrey tea', both of which are rich in beneficial plant nutrients. Just bung plenty of their soft, young leaves into a lidded container, cover with water and leave to stew for several weeks. The resulting foul-smelling liquid will need to be strained and diluted to the colour of weak tea before being applied as a foliar feed, making sure to wear protective clothing to prevent yourself from smelling like a medieval cesspit if you accidentally get it on your skin. All these liquid feeds can also be used to encourage hungry, early-summer flower perennials such as oriental poppy, lupin, geranium, geum, delphinium and astrantia to produce a second flush of flowers. Just cut the plants back hard once they go over, before generously watering and then liquid feeding them. Ireland's variable summer weather also poses challenges. It's at this time of year, for example, that many fast-growing herbaceous plants become vulnerable to wind damage. Likely victims include the tall, brittle flowers of delphiniums and lupins, which can snap in a summer gale if not given sufficient support in the shape of cunningly concealed stakes or purpose-made plant hoops. [ Five life lessons my garden taught me: Nature often has a quiet but not unkind laugh at our expense Opens in new window ] Fast-growing climbers such as clematis, honeysuckle, morning glory and sweet pea can also quickly collapse under their own weight, unless carefully trained up sturdy vertical supports. The same goes for climbing French beans, sugar snap and mangetout peas. Similarly, young courgette plants, not yet fully used to the rigours of an Irish summer, can get tattered and torn unless given a temporary blanket of fleece and some twiggy pea sticks to steady their fleshy, hollow stems and provide a gentle scaffold for their foliage. With plants growing in glasshouses and polytunnels, it's a different story. Here, the greatest risk of harm comes from extremes of temperature and irregular watering. Resist, for example, the urge to keep all doors and vents firmly closed on cooler days. This will only result in overly hot growing conditions and poor ventilation, causing plant stress and even death. When you water, do it generously and thoroughly, the aim being to properly soak the roots, but not so regularly and copiously that you constantly create the kind of very humid, muggy conditions that greatly increase the chances of certain pests and diseases. For the same reason, aim to water only the soil rather than the plants themselves. [ Organic market gardener Charles Dowding: 'So many people are intimidated or confused by the advice available' Opens in new window ] Both outdoors and under cover, keep a beady eye out for any early signs of slug or snail damage and take suitable precautions to prevent it from recurring. Hand-collecting slugs and snails from around vulnerable plants at night by torchlight is a useful way to minimise the damage. Also bear in mind that rank, weedy growth and garden 'dumps' of discarded pots and half-used bags of compost are among their favourite hiding places. Think ahead to the dog days of summer. Consider making some late sowings of fast-growing vegetables such as lettuce, annual spinach and oriental salad leaves to fill the growing space left behind by an early crop of potatoes Speaking of which, early June is an excellent time to hoe and hand-weed beds, borders and paths before weeds get badly out of control and start to self-seed, creating further problems. But try to do so cautiously to avoid accidentally uprooting any emerging, desirable, self-seeded seedlings that you might wish to keep. It's a good time at the moment to sow sweet William, pictured above with daisies below them. Photograph: Getty Finally, think ahead to the dog days of summer. Consider making some late sowings of fast-growing vegetables such as lettuce, annual spinach and oriental salad leaves to fill the growing space left behind by an early crop of potatoes, for example, or sow purple sprouting broccoli for a delicious spring crop. Weigh up, too, any potential weak spots in container displays or flower borders and think of ways that these might be easily and effectively filled later in the season with a few judiciously placed pots of late-flowering varieties such as dahlia, nicotiana, salvia, rudbeckia, sedum and helenium. In this way, your summer garden is guaranteed to go out with a bang, rather than a whimper. This week in the garden Tender, heat-loving vegetables such as courgettes, French beans, sweetcorn, pumpkins, and squash can now be safely planted outdoors. Choose a warm, still day, making sure that plants are properly hardened off in advance. It's also a good idea to initially protect young plants with garden fleece. Now's a good time to sow seed of hardy biennials such as wallflowers, Canterbury bells, sweet William and honesty. Recommended specialist suppliers include and Dates for your diary… RHSI Bellefield Open Weekend Bellefield House, Shinrone, Co Offaly. Today and tomorrow. With guided tours by head gardener Paul Smyth at 12pm and 2pm each day, plus plant sales. Buds & Blossom Garden Show Spink, Community Grounds, Abbeyleix, Co Laois. Tomorrow, Sunday, June 8th (12pm-6pm). Guest speakers John Jones, Colin Jones and Tom Coward, plus specialist plant sales by many of Ireland best small independent nurseries. Rathmines Open Gardens 2025 Tomorrow, June 8th (2pm-6pm). In association with The Rathmines Initiative, with several private gardens opening their doors to the public in aid of charity, along with Trinity Botanic Garden. See or contact Michael Kelly on 087 669 7722 for details.
