Summer Planting Guide – July to September
Summer is the perfect season for spending time outdoors, tending to your garden or outside space. You can soak up vitamin D, grow your own produce, and reap the rewards of your efforts throughout spring.
Our spring growing guide reviewed what vegetables, fruit and herbs you can plant from March to June. We also shared some advice about what tools you might find useful, from beginners to seasoned gardeners.
In this edition, we run through what to plant from July to September, including what you can harvest from your spring sowing and our top harvesting tips.
What to harvest in summer
Reap the rewards of your hard work in spring by harvesting the following:
Tomatoes: You can pick tomatoes when they are still green or leave them until they’re ripe. Once picked, store them at room temperature, and they will continue to ripen.
Peppers: Clip peppers once they’ve developed a nice thick flesh. Pick them while green or leave them to ripen for a sweeter taste.
Onions: When the tops have fallen and turned yellow, harvest and cure the bulbs.
Corn: Pick corn once the silks at the top of the cob have turned brown.
In summer, you can pick and enjoy plenty of fruit, including strawberries, blueberries, cherries, blackberries, raspberries, apples and grapes.
However, it’s important to get the timing right when harvesting fruit. If you pick too soon, the fruit will be unpalatable. Too late, and the fruit won’t last.
Summer is a great time to harvest edible herbs like basil, coriander and dill.
Whether it’s your first time harvesting or you need some reminders, follow our top harvesting tips for the best results:
- Check your plants regularly and harvest produce that’s ready to go. Some plants will stop producing when mature produce is left on the plant.
- Timing is important! Some produce is best when picked at peak ripeness. Others, for example, tomatoes, can be picked earlier as they continue to ripen off the plant.
- Only harvest herbs that are in good condition. If they are wilted or damaged in any way, they won’t improve once picked.
- Harvest in the morning when possible. The cooler temperatures mean your plants will be nice and hydrated before the hottest portion of the day begins.
- Handle your harvest with care. To avoid bruising, try cushioning a basket with a towel for transporting your fruit and veg.
- Use a knife or scissors to cut produce. Avoid tearing, as this can damage the plant and the produce.
- Store harvested herbs away from light and water.
What to plant in summer
Climbing bean, dwarf bean, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, chard, kohl rabi, lettuce, pak choi, peas, radish, spring onion, spinach, and swede.
Due to the extended dry weather, July is not a great month for planting fruit. But there are plenty of jobs to be getting on with to maintain what you planted earlier in the year.
Ensure you water any fruit plants in the morning so less water evaporates in the high temperatures. You can also keep busy by composting the base of your fruit plants, completing summer pruning, weeding the base of any fruit trees and harvesting produce.
July is a good time to sow quick-growing herbs like rocket, basil, dill, coriander, nasturtium and borage. These should grow quickly enough for you to harvest them before the frosty weather hits later in the year.
If you haven’t got around to it yet, there’s still time left to plant cabbage, Chinese cabbage, carrot, kale, lettuce, pak choi, radish, spinach and spring onion. However, harvesting is your main task this month!
August is really the last chance you have to plant strawberries in order for them to root properly before the colder temperatures. They grow best in fertile, well-drained soil. Aside from this, continue with your summer jobs as you did in July. August is a common holiday month. If you’re going away, try and persuade a friend or neighbour to keep up with your watering!
August is a great time to plant biennial herbs such as parsley, chervil and caraway. You can also sow violas and poppies in time for flowering next spring.
Green manure plants
This month, you might want to sow some green manures. These fast-growing plants cover bare soil and soak up nutrients from the ground that winter rains would otherwise wash away. They also help prevent weed growth by crowding them out, meaning less work for you! Green manures are most commonly used in vegetable gardens.
As autumn rolls around, most of your time will be spent preparing for winter. But you can still plant lettuce, turnips, radish, spring onion and garlic.
September is mostly a time for maintaining your plants. If you are growing raspberries, look to cut the canes and tie in new shoots. Continue pruning fruit trees and bushes and prepare your garden for the winter months.
The main planting period ends around September, but you can still sow a few seeds here and there. Coriander and chives can be planted in a windowsill space, while calendula, nigella and feverfew can be sown outside.
Grow your garden with Garden Street
Hopefully, you are feeling ready for a busy summer in the garden. If you want to upgrade your growing space, look at our range of planters, greenhouses and greenhouse shelves and accessories. For more garden guidance, check out our Spring Planting Guide.