As the sun reaches its summer peak, July is one of the busiest and most rewarding months of the calendar with plenty to harvest! A range of crops can still be sown now and general maintenance is crucial to ensure your garden stays fruitful into the autumn months.
What You Can Harvest in July
This month sees harvest baskets overflowing with vibrant, fresh produce. Broad beans and peas are usually at their peak, offering sweet pods if picked regularly. Courgettes seem to double in size overnight, so it’s wise to check them daily. New potatoes are ready to be gently dug up, especially the early varieties, and salads are abundant, lettuce, rocket, and mixed leaves thrive with regular picking. July is also a great month for beetroot and radishes, and if you have fruit bushes, you’ll likely be picking strawberries, raspberries, and gooseberries by the handful.
Here’s what’s typically ready for picking:
- Salad Crops – Lettuce, rocket, spinach, and other leafy greens are at their best.
- Peas and Beans – Sugar snap, and garden peas should be swelling nicely.
- French and broad beans are likely ready too, pick regularly to encourage more pods.
Root Vegetables
- Early potatoes can be gently dug up now.
- Radishes are one of the fasted growing crops and can be planted now, some varieties are ready to harvest in as little as four weeks. Radishes can be sown directly into the soil.
Soft Fruits
- Strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, blackcurrants, and redcurrants are ripening.
- Pick fruits as they ripen, remember the birds will be watching too!
Herbs
- Basil, coriander, parsley, mint, and dill are in full growth, regular picking helps keep them lush and productive.
What You Can Plant and Sow in July
Although it feels like the height of summer, there’s still time to sow a surprising number of crops. Quick growers like radishes, spring onions, and salad leaves can still go in now for late summer harvests. Beetroot and turnips do well too, as do leafy greens like chard and spinach. For autumn and winter, now is a good time to sow brassicas like kale and winter cabbages either directly or under cover. It’s also the right time to transplant out young leeks and any brassica plug plants raised earlier in the season. French beans can still be sown for a late crop if the weather holds, and regular sowings of lettuce will keep your salad supply going.
Quick Salad Greens
- Sow more lettuce, radish, rocket and mustard greens, try heat tolerant varieties for success in warmer weather.
Autumn and Winter Brassicas
- Sow broccoli, kale, and cabbage for transplanting later in summer.
- Brussels sprouts should be in the ground already, but you can still catch up early in the month.
Spring Onions and Leeks
- Late sowings of spring onions can extend your season.
- Leeks can still be transplanted if you haven’t done so already.
Root Vegetables
- Beetroot and Carrots – Sow a final round for a small, sweet harvest in early autumn.
- Turnips – It’s the perfect time to plant maincrop turnips, you can also sow for the leafy turnip tops too.
Key Jobs for July
Keeping on top of watering is critical this month, with long, dry spells, plants like tomatoes, courgettes, and runner beans need consistent moisture at the roots. Mulching helps reduce evaporation, and watering early in the morning or in the evening is best to prevent scorch and minimise waste – See our Watering Page for more information.
Weeds will also be growing rapidly, so regular hoeing or hand-weeding is essential to prevent them from taking over and competing with your crops.
Feeding becomes more important in July too, especially for fruiting plants. Tomatoes and cucumbers benefit from a weekly liquid feed, and beans will appreciate a nitrogen boost. Wondering which plant feeders to use? Click here to learn more.
Pests and diseases are often more active in warm weather, so keep a close eye out for signs of trouble, the likes of aphids, caterpillars, and mildew are all common now. Using netting to protect brassicas from pigeons and cabbage whites is a great idea, for more information about pest control click here.
Its also a good time to be thinking about training and supporting climbing, such as runner beans, cucumbers, and tomatoes that produce better when kept upright, and don’t forget about succession sowing, where every few weeks you can sow another batch of salad leaves or quick crops to ensure a steady supply.
While July brings plenty of tasks, it’s also a time to savour the harvest, fresh, just-picked produce is one of the greatest joys of growing your own, and there’s nothing better than planning meals around what’s ripe. If your crops are abundant, you could always freeze excess raspberries for example for the winter months.
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If you’re looking for advice on something we’ve not mentioned above, our friendly staff are always on hand to help.