The summer is finally here!
Life can be cold and hard for much of the year here in Ontario. Temperatures can get as low as -40°C during the winter. However, much of Ontario becomes an Edenic paradise during the summer. We’ve got to make the most of the summer months when they’re upon us.
Ontario is home to a treasure trove of world-class gardens during the summer months. If you want to try out your green thumb this summer, your friendly local tree service near Bradford is here for you! We’ve put together a summer garden checklist for Southern Ontario. Don’t let the chance to have a paradisiacal garden this summer pass you by.
Your Summer Garden Checklist For Southern Ontario
Let’s start by stating the obvious. Most of your planting should already be done by this time of year. Some plants may still bloom if you get them in the ground by mid-summer, so do some research if you’ve got your heart set on a particular perennial.
If you do plant something mid-summer, you’ll want to get a plant that’s already been started. Plants aren’t likely to have enough time to grow from seed by this time of the year.
Now onto the summer garden checklist!
Mulch
The first thing you’ll want to check off your checklist is mulching your garden. A layer of mulch insulates both your plants and the soil, keeping moisture in the ground for as long as possible. It also helps maintain an appropriate temperature for your plants to grow and thrive.
Luckily, this step is easy as can be. Spread a layer of mulch up to 2-inches deep over your entire garden bed. This mulch can be made from pretty much any organic material. Straw, wood chips, grass clippings, or shredded leaves can all be used to mulch your garden.
If you’re hiring a tree service in Markham or an arborist in Bradford, you might ask them to save their trimmings for you. This will save you both time and money while also being environmentally friendly!
Weed Your Garden
This item on our southern Ontario summer garden checklist is a bit obvious, but it’s easy to forget just how essential weeding is. During the hot, humid months of the Ontario summer, weeds can take off like a rocket. They’ll overtake the plants you’re trying to grow in the blink of an eye, at times. Don’t let it go until it’s too late.
To start, make sure you can differentiate between weeds and the plants you’re trying to grow. Study some local flora guides to learn to identify common weeds in your area. If possible, focus on what they look like as seedlings or shoots. You don’t want to wait until they have matured to remove them from your garden.
Once you can identify the weeds, catch them as early as possible. They are much easier to remove than when they’re full grown. It also stops them from spreading seeds, which prevents a whole new generation of weeds from sprouting. Seeing as how a single dandelion can produce up to 2,000 seeds in one year, or lamb’s quarter gestating an astonishing 150,000 seeds annually, that’s going to save you considerable weeding down the line!
Add Some Colour With Summer Annuals
Your garden may lose some of its sparkle and vibrancy as the summer wears on. The spring annuals and perennials might start to wither and fade, leaving your garden looking a bit threadbare. Luckily, there’s a simple solution! Just drop some summer annuals in the ground that are more able to flourish during the intense heat of summer.
Summer Annuals That Flourish In The Heat Include:
- Zinnia
- Sweet Potato Vine
- Salvia
- Portulaca
- Pentas
- Coleus
- Ageratum
- Lantana
- Angelonia
Plant Summer Bulbs
Not all of your planting needs to be done in the springtime. There’s a plethora of plant life that sprout from bulbs that need to be planted later in the season. Plants such as canna, calla, and dahlia sprout from delicate bulbs that are easily damaged, and should be planted once the danger of frost has passed. Once the temperature has risen, they’ll grow quickly from the bulb.
Pinch Mums and Other Fall-Blooming Perennials
Some perennials don’t come into their full glory until the autumn. You’ll want to keep them growing straight and sturdy for as long as possible to ensure a vibrant season once they finally bloom. You can pinch their tops off of many robust autumn-blooming perennials until after the 4th of July. This usually results in a sturdier, more compact plant, and you may get more blooms radiating from the side shoots (although these blooms are often smaller and appear later than the initial flowerings).
Examples Of Fall-Blooming Perennials That Can Be Pinched Include:
- Balloon flower
- Bee balm
- Goldenrod
- Joe Pye weed
- Perennial sunflower
- Phlox
- Russian sage
Get Rid Of Faded Flowers
Just because a flower’s dead doesn’t mean it’s not taking up resources. Dead leaves and blossoms can still be using up a plant’s energy, preventing it from growing to its full magnificence.
Removing dead flowers, blossoms, and leaves is called deadheading. It prevents a plant from producing seeds, and it will expend more energy growing vibrant flowers. It also reduces the risk of self-seeding plants taking over your garden next season. Self-seeding plants can run riot throughout a garden if you’re not careful.
Self-Seeding Annuals and Perennials That Can Be Deadheaded Include:
- Columbine
- Coneflower
- Cupflower
- False sunflower
- Garlic chives
- Verbena
- Datura
- Flowering tobacco
- Kiss-Me-Over-The-Garden-Gate
- Larkspur
- Spider flower
Get Rid Of Pests
There’s nothing more dispiriting than working hard on your garden all spring and summer long only to have some pesky pests eat holes through your beautiful buds. Always be on guard against pests invading your garden.
Don’t restrict your observations to animals and insects, either. Keep an eye out for disease and infection, as well, which can do even more damage to your garden in even less time.
Common Pests To Watch Out For Include:
- Black spot
- Cucumber beetles
- Grasshoppers
- Japanese beetles
- Powdery mildew
- Rust
- Squash bugs
- Tomato hornworms
Water Your Plants
Last but most definitely not least, no summer garden checklist is complete without this final time. Watering your plants is perhaps the most essential part of having a thriving, vibrant garden all summer long.
Sometimes we need to be reminded to water our gardens manually. It can be tempting to rely upon Mother Nature to do our irrigation for us. This would be a mistake; especially during the summer, when the weather is often hot, dusty, and dry.
As a general rule of thumb, plants need about an inch of water a week. It’s best to give it to them all at once, as it helps to penetrate the soil and reach the deepest roots. When watering your plants, apply the water directly to the ground rather than a plant’s foliage. A soaker hose is an excellent way to ensure that your irrigation is going straight to the soil.
When you water your plants can be as important as how much. Avoid watering your plants during the intense heat of midday. Water will evaporate more during midday, which will require you to use more water to get the same beneficial effect. The best time to water in the summer is between dawn and 10:00 AM. If this is impractical for you, then late afternoon or early evening is also good.
If you use a standard sprinkler system, give the leaves a chance to dry slightly before night, to avoid potential fungus issues. If you are using a drip or soaker system, wet leaves are not an issue; so you can water right up until nighttime.
Following this summer garden checklist will help make sure your garden will be its most beautiful throughout the entire summer, no matter what the weather brings. Summer comes but once a year, so make sure to make the most of it!
At Dave Lund Tree Services, we are proud to assist southern Ontario gardeners with caring for their trees, bushes, and shrubs. If you need a tree service contractor, or want to consult with one of our arborists in Newmarket, Bradford, Aurora, or Richmond Hill, don’t hesitate to use our contact page to contact us, or call toll-free at 1-800-363-0511 with any tree- or garden-related tasks you may have.