Deadhead faded iris blooms

Remove faded flowers from mass displays of iris to better show off the plants that are still looking fresh and at their peak.

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Remove spent blooms by cutting them down to their leaves to keep the display looking attractive

Once the whole flowering display is over, all the flower stems can be cut back to the base to tidy them up, but allow the foliage to die down naturally so that the plant can build up its reserves of energy for next year's blooms. If the flowering display was poor this year, the plants may need to be divided or moved to a sunnier spot.

Give roses a feed

Sprinkle a granular rose feed on the soil surface around the base of repeat-flowering roses to keep the plants healthy and encourage a second flush of beautiful flowers later in summer. Ideally, the feed should be applied when rain is expected to help the release of the nutrients into the soil.

A granular feed now will slowly release nutrients over the season

Large roses with large leaves can act like an umbrella though, so if the ground doesn’t get saturated by rain after applying the feed, give the plant a good soak with a watering can full of water, preferably rainwater.

STEP BY STEP

Add perennials to pot displays

Plant drought-tolerant perennials such as veronica around the edge of large pots containing evergreens to provide year-round colour and scent, and attract pollinators.

Nurseries and garden centres should have a wide selection of perennials on offer this month.