07/17/2026
Gardening Tasks for Late Summer
Harvest and Maintenance
• It's harvest time, so keep an eye on your veggies!
• Check them often so they don't rot, get too big, or get eaten by pests before you can pick them.
• Also, keep up with succession planting, watering, and deadheading.
Planting for Fall
• Start your fall garden's heading cole crop seeds indoors now.
• Direct sow radishes, carrots, beets, turnips, and kale from late July through August.
Pest and Disease Monitoring
• Watch your tomato plant leaves for signs of leaf spot diseases.
• Keep checking for the pests we talked about in June.
Flower Care for Reblooming
• Deadhead your garden flowers, whether they're annuals or perennials, after they bloom.
• This helps them put energy into more flowers, foliage, or roots.
• Many will bloom again.
Fertilizing Flowering Annuals
• Flowering takes a lot of energy, so it's a good idea to fertilize your flowering annuals with a balanced fertilizer once they start blooming.
• Fertilize them one more time before the season ends.
Late Season Sowing
• You can keep sowing seeds throughout July for late crops of beets, bush beans, carrots, Swiss chard, cucumbers, and summer squash.
• Cover them with pre-moistened potting soil mix to prevent crusting and cracking.
• To keep the moisture in, cover the rows with a thin layer of mulch or floating row cover fabric.
Iris Division and Transplanting
• Divide and transplant bearded iris using the vigorous ends of the rhizomes.
• Get rid of the old center part.
• Cut the leaves back to about six inches.
Mosquito Control
• Get rid of mosquitoes by eliminating all sources of stagnant water.
• Think about putting up a bat house to encourage bats – they eat mosquitoes!
Watering Strategies
• Your garden needs an inch of rain or water every week.
• Early morning is the best time to water.
• Watering in the evening isn't as good because wet plant leaves overnight are more likely to get fungal diseases.
• Mulch your plants to reduce water loss and improve your harvest.
Container Plant Watering
• Check the soil moisture of your container-grown vegetables and flowers daily.
• As it gets hotter, some plants might need water twice a day.
Herb Pruning for Growth
• Pinch the flowers off herbs like basil, mint, and oregano to encourage bushy growth.
Harvesting and Storage Guidelines
• Harvest onions and garlic when their tops dry and fall over.
• Braid garlic tops and hang them in a cool, dry place.
• Cut onion tops back to one inch and dry them thoroughly before storing.
• Use any damaged produce right away.