Summer Gardening Checklist

It’s never too late in the season to get outside and start planting your dream garden. There’s no better feeling than sitting in your yard enjoying the beautiful, flowery landscape that you created. Before you get planting, use this to-do list to get you and your flower beds ready for the season ahead!

PLANNING FOR YOUR GARDEN

What kind of garden do you want? Are you looking to grow fresh vegetables, herbs, flowers? Will you plant annuals, perennials or both? Annuals looks great for most of the season but must be replanted every year, whereas perennials have a shorter bloom but come back every year. Deciding what exactly you want in your garden is an important first step that might take a little bit of research. Our advice is to start small and simple, and then expand once you get more comfortable.

DECIDE WHERE TO PUT YOUR GARDEN

Once you decide what kind of garden you want, you can start mapping out where to put it! Almost all vegetables and flowers need a minimum of six hours of sun each day. As we are now in full summer mode and the days are longer, finding sun for 6 hours shouldn’t be too much of a problem! Spend a day observing how the sun moves around your yard. If you have trouble finding spots with a lot of sun, you might want to consider finding plants that are more shade tolerant.

PREP AND ORGANIZE YOUR TOOLS

Sharpen and oil your pruning equipment, organize your shed and/or greenhouse, and repair or replace any broken or damaged tools.

MAKE YOUR OWN COMPOST

Get a backyard compost bin and compost food scraps, grass clippings and other green waste to use for nutrient-rich fertilizer.

CREATE A GARDEN LAYOUT & SELECT PLANTS

Choose areas with the right amount of sun exposure, and prune nearby trees and shrubs to increase sun exposure, if needed. You will also need to install sprinkler heads to keep your garden hydrated. Next, organize garden beds to fit your yard and select the best plants based on the environment they’ll live in.

PREPARE YOUR GARDEN BEDS

Remove any weeds, dead plants or debris, and fill the beds with your compost and other organic material to enhance soil nutrients. Rake the garden bed to remove any debris including branches, rocks or leaves, edge the garden to give it a clean, crisp finish, and finally, apply a thick layer of mulch after the beds have been planted.

CHOOSE YOUR PLANTS

Whether you decided on a vegetable or flower garden, you will now have to choose which specific plants you want to grow. Some of the best perennials for beginners include coneflowers, coreopsis, hostas, peonies and black-eyed susans. Some of the best annuals for beginners include marigolds, pansies, dusty millers and dianthus. Some of the easiest vegetables include lettuce, peppers and cucumbers.

GET PLANTING!

You can either choose to buy young plants or sow seeds when starting your garden. Some plants are easier than others to grow from seed. If you go this route, make sure to follow the package instructions on when, how deep and how far apart the plant seeds need to be. If you are going for a specific color theme, you should also consider which flowers will look best and complement one another once in bloom.

There you have it! You’re well on your way to having a fully-functional, vegetable-producing garden. Start now and give your garden the time it needs to reach its full potential. 

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