David Domoney (Image: Supplied)
July is a fantastic month to enjoy homegrown fruit and plan more harvests to come. From bold flavours to brilliant foliage, fruiting plants bring beauty and bounty to every garden.
Blueberries: Colourful and nutritious
Now’s the time to enjoy ripe blueberries or plant a potted bush for next year’s crop. One standout variety is ‘Pink Lemonade’, which produces blush-pink berries and stunning autumn colour. For traditional crops, ‘Bluecrop’ delivers reliable yields, and ‘Duke’ offers early fruit with good flavour. Blueberries thrive in acidic soil, so use ericaceous compost and rainwater. Feed now with a specialist fertiliser and ensure consistent watering, especially if growingin containers.
Raspberries: Tall and trusty
Raspberries are in their prime this month. Summer-fruiting types like ‘Glen Ample’ will produce generously. Pick fruit daily and prune out spent canes once they’ve finished cropping. New canes should be left to carry next year’s harvest. For late summer picking, plant ‘Polka’, an autumn-fruiting variety that’s vigorous and sweet. Water well in dry spells and mulch to retain moisture.
Read more: Gardening expert shares 10 pretty flowers that attract bees to your garden
Strawberries: Sweet and simple
Most summer strawberries are winding down by late July. After fruiting, remove old leaves and unwanted runners. Feed plants with a high-potash fertiliser to support next year’s crop. ‘Cambridge Favourite’ offers mid-season reliability, while ‘Mara des Bois’ continues fruiting into late summer with rich flavour and scent. Plan now for replacements. Pot up young runners or order fresh plantsfor autumn planting.
Currants: Small and rewarding
Red, white and blackcurrants are ready to pick. Harvest when berries are plump and richly coloured. ‘Ben Sarek’ is ideal for blackcurrants in smaller gardens, while ‘Red Lake’ is a dependable redcurrant with tangy fruit. After harvesting, prune older stems and keep plants well-watered.
Netting may be needed to protect ripening fruit from birds. Find out more about growing berries and currants at my YouTube channel, @daviddomoney.
Fruit trees: Long-term joy
Although tree planting is best done in winter, July is key for care. Established trees like ‘Conference’ pear and ‘Victoria’ plum benefit from fruit thinning now to improve size and reduce stress on branches. If you’re growing trained forms such as espaliers, now is the time for summer pruning to shape the tree and encourage fruiting buds. Water young trees deeply during hot, dry weather.
Top 5 Gardening Jobs:
1. Water and mulch pots and borders before going on holiday. Move containers into the shade and group them together to reduce moisture loss and ease care for anyone watering in your absence.
2. Prick out biennial seedlings sown inJune, such as foxgloves, wallflowers and honesty. Move them into individual pots or trays to grow on. Keep shaded and well-watered during hot spells.
3. Buy seed potatoes for a festive crop. Varieties like ‘Charlotte’ or ‘Maris Peer’ can be planted in large containers now for harvesting around Christmas. Use fresh compost and earth up as shoots appear.
4. Allow allium flowerheads to dry naturally in the border for late summer structure. Once fully dried, cut and store in a dry shed or use indoors in arrangements. Leave some to self-seed for natural spread. Findout more about this at my YouTube channel,@daviddomoney.
5. Sow spring cabbage this month in seed trays or a well-prepared nursery bed. Keep seedlings shaded from midday sun and moist until ready to transplant later in summer. Choose hardy cultivars like ‘Durham Early’ for overwintering.
Focus Plant: Crocosmia
For vibrant colour and movement in borders, crocosmia is a summer star. These clump-forming perennials send up slender stems topped with vivid funnel-shaped flowers in fiery shades of red, orange and yellow. By midsummer, most crocosmia varieties are blooming. To keep the display neat, remove fading flowers as they go over. While this won’t trigger repeat flowering, it prevents seed formation.
Crocosmia thrives in full sun and well-drained soil. In clay soils, improve drainage by working in grit or compost at planting time. Although drought-tolerant once established, they’ll benefit from watering during prolonged dry spells, especially in their first year.
These plants rarely need feeding, but a mulch of garden compost applied in spring helps retain moisture and support healthy growth in summer.
Avoid feeding with nitrogen-rich fertilisers. Taller cultivars, such as Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’, may need light staking, particularly in exposed spots or after rain. Compact varieties like ‘Jackanapes’ or ‘Emily McKenzie’ are excellent for pots or front-of-border colour without the need for support.
Fun fact: The name crocosmia comes from the Greek krokos (saffron) and osme (smell) because dried crocosmia flowers emit a saffron-like scent when placed in warm water.
Did You Know?
• In the 1800s, estate horses wore thick leather boots when pulling lawn mowers across formal lawns. These padded overshoes stopped iron-shod hooves from marking or tearing delicate turf.
• Courgette flowers are edible and best picked early in the day while still open. Choose male blooms, stuff with soft cheese and herbs, then lightly fry for a summer treat.
• The Romans wove roses into crowns for feasts and festivals. These floral garlands weren’t just decorative, they symbolised celebration, honour and secrecy during lavish banquets and gatherings. Learn more about roses in my recent masterclass, in the third episode of step-by-step gardening at my YouTube channel @daviddomoney.
• Chilli peppers contain capsaicin, which gives them heat and may help boost metabolism and circulation. They’re also packed with vitamin C, making them a spicy way to support immunity.