In July, gardening tasks center around maintenance, harvesting, and planning for the future. With the summer heat beating down, this is the time to clean up, tend to growing plants, manage water wisely, and keep the garden productive and healthy. If you’re wondering what tasks you should get started on this month, there are quite a few that come to mind.

July is a hands-on month in the garden. It’s hot, busy, productive, and rewarding. With consistent care, you can keep your plants thriving, enjoy peak harvest time, and set yourself up for continued success as the seasons begin to change.

Weed and Mulch

Mulch can tremendously reduce weed pressure and drought stress during peak summer months.

At the top of my list of July garden tasks is weeding and mulching. You should absolutely take care of these tasks in July, to keep weeds from taking over. Many of these can grow aggressively in the summer heat. They compete with your plants for nutrients, water, and space, all of which are undesirable. 

Weeding is important to do before the weeds go to seed. If you wait until August, you’re likely to end up with a lot more weeds next year. If you pull them out before they finish flowering, you’ll save yourself some trouble later. 

It’s a good time to check out how your mulch is holding up, too. Make sure to weed first and then lay down fresh mulch or straw to prevent the weeds from growing back as rapidly. 

Keep mulch at least a couple of inches away from plant stems. This helps to prevent rot. Water before mulching to lock in moisture and insulate plant roots. This is another great quality, as it can keep those roots a bit cooler, which reduces stress. 

Deadhead

Pruning off those spent flowers can promote more blooms later in the season.

You may not realize that some of those spring and early summer bloomers will flower again in the fall. All you have to do is deadhead them, and they will produce another flush of beautiful blooms! While this isn’t true of all plants, deadheading is still a great practice to adopt. 

Deadheading is the process of removing spent flowers from your plants. This is a perfect July garden task as many spring and summer bloomers are wrapping up. Some may even be dropping their own flowers by this time.

The primary reason for doing so is to increase the number of blooms. If you do it consistently while a plant is flowering, it will continue to bloom longer and produce more flowers. 

When a plant goes to seed, it typically stops producing new flowers. Deadheading will prolong the bloom and, at the same time, it will prevent excessive self-seeding.  Not to mention, it makes the garden look neater and more manicured in general. 

Removing spent flowers also redirects energy from the old blooms to new growth. When you deadhead, don’t just pop the flower off; cut the stem all the way to a node. This will create stronger, bushier plants. 

Water Wisely

Review your irrigation methods and make sure you’re not watering in the middle of the day.

July brings more hot weather, often considered the hottest of the year for many. That significantly affects the way water behaves in the garden. Heat causes the water you use in the garden to evaporate faster. When it comes to July gardening tasks, it’s a crucial time to review your watering methods. 

The time of day is the most vital aspect of watering in July and throughout the hotter months. The best time to water is early in the morning. The prime watering time is between 5 and 9 a.m., when temperatures are coolest. 

Typically, there is less wind in the morning, and the sun is lower in the sky. These are also factors in evaporation. Your plants will be in the prime state for absorbing that water. 

The most effective watering method is to water the soil, rather than overhead. Overhead watering deposits much of the moisture on the leaves, which is not beneficial to your plants. Using drip irrigation or soaker hoses is ideal, as it slowly deposits water at the roots. This allows the roots to absorb the water as it also soaks into the ground most effectively. 

Watering early and at the soil level also helps to prevent fungal disease. This is particularly important in humid climates. Watering in the morning allows the water to evaporate during the day, which can help reduce water loss. By evening, your plants are dry and less susceptible to fungus. 

When you water, do it deeply and infrequently. Shallow, frequent watering leads to weak, surface-level roots. These dry out quickly. Deep watering promotes deep roots, which are able to reach water farther down in the ground, making them more resilient. 

Harvest Summer Crops

Regularly pick tomatoes and other fruits at their peak ripeness or just before.

Another July garden task that can be fun and exciting is harvesting your warm-weather vegetables and fruits. By July, many of your summer fruit trees will be ready to harvest. Peaches, plums, and apricots will all ripen around July. Blueberries and cherries are also likely to be ripe by this time. 

Depending on your climate, you are likely to have some vegetables ready to harvest. Tomatoes, summer squash, green beans, cucumbers, peppers, eggplants, and more may be ready to pick by this time. 

Plan Fall Crops

It may seem weird to be planning the garden again, but you’ll want to map out your fall plantings.

A July gardening task that you can do indoors, in the air conditioning, is to plan what you’ll plant for the fall. You can even start some cool-weather seeds indoors. If you live in a mild climate, it’s fine to begin directly sowing some of those crops. 

In warmer climates, you can still plant some short-season, warm-weather vegetables. Start a new round of squash, bush beans, or cucumbers for an early fall harvest. 

While you’re at it, this is a good time to plant one more round of summer and fall blooming annuals. Marigolds, cosmos, sunflowers, and zinnias are all good for planting mid-summer. 

Fertilize

Adding low-nitrogen fertilizer is very helpful for later season growth.

Fertilizing is a July gardening task that requires some attention and care. Too much fertilizer, combined with heat stress, can cause significant damage to your garden. It’s still a good time to give your plants some added nutrients, but how and when you do so is something to consider. 

Ensure you use the correct type of fertilizer for the current season. For vegetables and flowers, a low-nitrogen formula is ideal. Use a bloom booster with a ratio of 5-10-10 or a similar formulation to aid in flower and fruit development. 

If you’re growing herbs and leafy greens, the low-nitrogen rule doesn’t apply. In fact, it’s time to give these a formula with more nitrogen and less potassium and phosphorus.

A formula with a ratio of 10-5-5 is best. Strive only to give your plants what they need, while they contend with the stress of summer heat. 

Manage Pests and Diseases

Regularly scout for pests and diseases so you can catch them early.

Finally, one of the most essential July garden tasks is managing pests and diseases. Pests increase in the summer due to warm temperatures, which accelerate the lifecycles of insects. This allows multiple generations to emerge at once.  

Increased plant growth also increases the availability of food and shelter for many insects. Your plants are also more susceptible to stress from heat and dehydration. This makes them weaker and more susceptible to damage. 

High humidity and warmth, paired with more crowding in the garden, make diseases more prevalent as well. The increased moisture, combined with reduced airflow, increases the risk of infection, particularly fungal diseases. 

Inspect your garden regularly to catch issues early and prevent them from spreading. Mulch is helpful to prevent pathogens from splashing onto plants. Pruning to increase airflow is another great way to minimize the risk. 

Good watering habits, strategic pruning, and regular monitoring are all great July garden tasks. If you keep a close eye and deal with issues early, you can significantly mitigate pest and disease damage.