DENVER, Colorado — The arrival of summer heat means changes to gardening. After coping with wet conditions and hail, now we shift how we do things in the garden.
Fertilize. Plants were slowed down by cool, wet conditions and hail damage. Nitrogen will help get them up to speed. Vegetables, in particular, will benefit from a foliar feeding of a fertilizer with a high ratio of nitrogen.
Spinach and lettuce may not last long in the heat. They bolt, meaning they send up flowering stalks and leaves become bitter. I'm growing an heirloom leaf lettuce called "summertime" that is touted to be more heat tolerant. We'll see. Continue harvesting the leaves as long as possible. Then replace them with heat-loving plants such as basil or peppers.
If you're replacing and replanting containers, choose heat-loving plants such as salvias, zinnias, marigolds, geraniums, lantana, coleus and gomphrena. Expose new purchases to the sun gradually or they will burn.
My patio looks a bit better since I moved in pots of Asiatic lilies. I grow them in an out-of-the-way nursery area and they weren't damaged too much by hail. The Asiatic lilies are very colorful but scentless. After blooming, I'll return the pots of lilies to the nursery area for the rest of the season and move in the Oriental lilies. They bloom later and are both beautiful and fragrant. Never cut back the plants; only remove seed pods.
Another delightful plant that is in bloom now are true blue Agapanthus. They're commonly called Lily of the Nile, which is misleading since they're native to South Africa. It's a stunning flower and thrives in pots that need to be overwintered indoors.
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