By Kerry Peetz
Colorado Master Gardener

Beneath the Colorado sun, July is shining bright. By now, gardens have been planted and it’s time to celebrate and busy ourselves with helping them thrive and survive.

Early July

Last call for zinnia seeds! Plant in a sunny soil bed. While other annuals begin looking sad and spent these late bloomers will be fresh, caffeinated, and ready to strike a pose.

If it doesn’t rain, give trees a deep soak. Pay attention to their silent cries for help, which include:

— The droop: Leaves looking limp and fainting during peak afternoon heat.

— The crispy: Deciduous leaf edges turning crunchy, and brown.

— The bleach out: Vibrant greens fading into yellow, or conifer needles resembling rusty nails.

— The toss: Tossing their leaves to the ground prematurely in a desperate, bid to conserve hydration.

Do a quick check and, if needed, add mulch. Think of it as a cool, moisture-locking duvet that helps slow evaporation.

Lawns should be kept at 2.5 to 3.5 inches tall. Why, you ask? Mowing to less than 2 inches can result in decreased drought and heat tolerance and a higher incidence of insects, diseases, and weeds.

Mid-July

Prune back the arborvitae, juniper, and boxwood once they explode past their neat boundaries. Never take more than one-third of their green unless you want them to hold a lifelong grudge.

Drop your hands and back away from the asters and chrysanthemums; their autumn blooming schedule is locked in. However, feel free to pinch the petunias to force them into a second wave of flowering.

Prune delphiniums and perennial salvias after their first show. They can produce a beautiful second encore.

Late July

Give your tomatoes water on a predictable schedule. Break this rule and they will punish you with black, leathery bottoms and fruit shapes that resemble horror sculptures.

Harvest your zucchinis when they hit 6 to 8 inches in length. Leave them for another weekend and they will swell into heavy, wooden clubs capable of breaking a car window.

Plant new leaf lettuce seeds and sugar snap peas so you have something crisp to crunch on when the autumn chills come back to town.

War against the garden monsters

Hunt down the giant tomato hornworms. Pluck them off and “take them to the train station” or Yellowstone. No questions asked, no bodies recovered.

If the Alberta spruce or junipers start looking like a haunted house draped in sticky white webbing, blast those spider mites with a high-pressure jet of hose water.

Do not lay a single finger on a ladybug. Beneath that cute, polka-dot exterior lies a ruthless, bloodthirsty predator with a ferocious appetite for aphids. Treat them like the tiny hired mercenaries they are!

Submit gardening questions to csumg2@elpasoco.com or call 719-520-7684. The in-person help desk is open Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Visit elpaso.extension.colostate.edu and register for upcoming classes at epcextension.eventbrite.com.