It's July in Page County! That means all of your hard work throughout the spring is probably paying off right about now with abundant flowers and produce just starting to really pour in.
Did you realize, though, that the planting part of the season isn't over? You can have a very fruitful and beautiful autumn and get a head start on next year if you make a planting plan right now for July and beyond. Let's take a look at some things you can plant right now (and some you can plan ahead for to take care of in August and September!)
Flowers
We often think of flowers as something you plant in fall for spring blooms or in spring for summer blooms. But July is the perfect time to plant these beauties:
Moss Rose: Portulaca
Portulaca is a beautiful succulent that grows low to the ground and spreads out a bit as it flowers all summer long. It doesn't care how hot or dry it gets... it will just keep flowering for you! You can plant it right now to fill in any color gaps in your garden, or as a ground cover to help keep weeds at bay. It will keep flowering for you until the first hard frost.
Zinnias!
Yes! ZINNIAS!
It's not too late to plant these and let their bright cheery faces perk up a fading summer garden. These plants are sturdy, heat & drought tolerant once they get established which only takes a couple of weeks.
Cosmos!
Fast growing, heat tolerant, and so many COLORS!
Even from seed, you'll have several months to enjoy these before the first hard frost hits us. Bonus - they easily reseed your flower bed and will act like a perennial by growing itself from seed every year! They come in oranges, yellows, pinks, purples and more. ENJOY!
Marigolds
This old standby should be all over your garden. It helps deter pests and YES you can add it in to your garden in July! It only takes a few weeks to go from seed to bloom and will fill in empty places nicely with cheerful, sturdy plants.
Eat-ables!
Yes - you CAN plant more edible goodies right now to harvest through the first frost and beyond. Here in Luray, we experience our average first frost date on October 15th (on average) and all of these will either bear their crop before that time, or can be harvested after frost (some well into winter).
Beans
Beans that climb grow fast and are quick to first flowers. You'll be harvesting beans within weeks and the more you harvest, the more they'll grow!
Cucumbers
Cucumbers grow fast enough that you'll be able to get yourself a nice crop in before frost hits. To extend your season, you can even grow (from seed!) compact bush varieties in containers! Then, you can pull them inside when frost threatens and put them back out during sunny autumn days. If you're careful, you could still be picking cucumbers into November!
Peas
Okay - should these be in this section? Or the flower section? I just don't know.
You COULD plant them for their beautiful flowers and just leave it at that. OR you could enjoy the flowers and then eat the delicious sweet peas that follow. There is NOTHING like home-grown peas. Even if you don't normally like peas, these are worth growing just for the flowers.
Carrots
Have you ever gone out in late December to pull carrots for Christmas dinner? They are the sweetest, most amazing vegetable you've ever experienced.
Plant your carrots as late as August 26th and harvest them throughout the winter as you need them. They are worth the little bit of space they take up.
What Else?
Your turn - Tell us in the comments what else YOU plant this time of year? What do you plan to plant in August or September?
