Late Summer Garden Update
Summer is in full swing in our garden, so here’s a fresh update and a few photos to show what’s happening at the end of July and the start of August. It’s a challenging period for us — July was mostly dry until a heavy rain a few days ago. Our garden sits on chalky, fast-draining soil, so long dry spells take a toll. We try to avoid unnecessary watering, so that downpour was a real relief.
This time of year, many of the early-spring flowers and vegetables begin to fade. The bright colours we enjoyed earlier in summer start to mellow, and last August’s sparse look was fresh in our minds. This year we prepared by planting lots of dahlias and lilies, and they are now coming into their stride. We’ve focused on extending the season with reliable bloomers so the garden stays vibrant while still producing food.
Our dahlias have been a particularly rewarding project. We harvested seed from three plants last year and sowed them in February. The varietal mix from those home-saved seeds has been delightful — some colours and patterns surprised us, and one variety might even be unique to our plot. The dark purple, red, and pink tones are my favourites this season, and I’ll be collecting seeds from the best flowers to carry the colours into next year.
On the vegetable side, our zucchini, marrows, and pumpkins are growing at an astonishing rate. It feels like they gain centimetres overnight. We can’t use everything ourselves, so we’ve been sharing the surplus with neighbours. If you have the same problem, quick recipes like zucchini fritters or fast pickles are great ways to use a glut — I’ll publish posts with those recipes in the coming days.
The lavender and buddleja borders are buzzing with bees and bumblebees, and we discovered another bumblebee hive just outside the garden. It’s wonderful to see so many pollinators visiting. I’ve written previously about simple ways to encourage bees and bumblebees into a garden; ensuring a mix of nectar-rich plants, continuous bloom, and shelter makes a big difference. Lavender is especially rewarding — it smells wonderful and we use sprigs to scent rooms and closets.
Our onions are nearly ready to harvest and are getting impressively large. I’m already imagining onion pies in the autumn. Leafy greens such as kale and collard have bounced back after a small beetle outbreak in early July. The simplest controls worked best for us: shaking the plants regularly to dislodge pests and placing eco-friendly glue bands around stems to stop beetles from climbing up. Those measures significantly reduced the damage.
Some of the more exotic plants are thriving in the warm weather. Our yacon has grown so large it is almost hiding the compost bin — a satisfying sign of fertility. The papaya and lemon trees both carry sizable fruits that should be harvest-ready soon. The cucamelon, a feisty little relative of the cucumber, is establishing itself sturdily; it’s more vigorous than expected and reputed to taste like a lime-cucumber mix. I’ll report back once we harvest a meaningful quantity.
Tomatoes have exploded this year and are turning one side of our patio into a jungle. With four blight-resistant bushes, we hope to harvest close to our projected yield — a generous crop for a small space. The dense foliage provides shade for smaller plants and keeps the patio feeling lush through late summer.
Looking ahead, we’ve sown Asian varieties of kale, mizuna, bok choy, and collards for the autumn. These types tolerate humid, warm autumn conditions and are less likely to bolt than many Western greens. Mizuna is one of my favourites for autumn salads and stir-fries — it has a pleasant, peppery edge that sits somewhere between mustard and arugula.
Overall, the garden is doing well despite the dry spell earlier in July. Thoughtful planting, seed-saving, targeted pest control, and a few timely rains have made the difference. We’re enjoying a colourful, productive late summer that feeds both pollinators and our family table. I’ll share recipes and more tips as we harvest and preserve — keep an eye out for quick zucchini ideas and a cucamelon taste test when the time comes.
