JULY
In the Edible Garden
- Plant late season vegetables by mid-July. Note the number of “days to harvest” indicated on seed packets. Direct seed beets, beans, collards, cucumbers, summer squash and cabbage.
- Check out the University of Illinois Extension website, “Common Problems for Vegetable Crops” at www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/vegproblems.Keep cucumbers well watered during dry weather.Watch tomatoes for these common problems:Flowers but No Fruit—Due to high daytime temperatures (above 90 degrees) and nighttime temps above 70 degrees. Large Plants with No Fruit—Possibly caused by too much high-nitrogen fertilizer. Blossom End Rot—A black, leathery scar that occurs on the blossom end of the fruit. The cause is extremes in soil moisture. Control by watering evenly and mulching. Cracked Fruit—Tomatoes crack when rapid growth is brought on by rainy periods following a dry spell. Keep moisture even and mulch.
- Catface—“Catface” is a fruit deformity, and it appears after periods of uneven temperatures when tomato blossoms stick to developing fruit and cause misshapen ends. Fruits are edible—cut away damaged areas.
In the Ornamental Garden
- Make the last pinch on mums early- to mid-July to allow bud set for fall bloom.
- Containers may need watering twice a day.Apply a control for grubs in the lawn in July if you have had problems in the past.
- Water the lawn at least once a week with the equivalent of 1 inch of moisture. You can allow the lawn to go dormant, but give it at least one-half inch of water every two to three weeks to keep it alive. Do not bring your lawn in and out of dormancy.
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