to do this weekend

Keep deadheading roses, perennials and annuals like sweet peas to keep the display going. Temperatures are high at the moment and plants need a lot of water. Make sure you prioritise anything in containers, that’s newly-planted or greedy veg, like courgettes. Cutting back plants in baskets followed by feeding can encourage new growth and help revive tired displays. Plants with a carpet-like growth habit, e.g. some alpines, can become patchy, with central areas dying off. These patches can be in-filled with gritty compost, to encourage re-growth. Some late-flowering border perennials may benefit from a quick-acting feed before they come into bloom, especially if the soil is not very fertile. Start collecting seed from plants you want to grow next year, especially annuals such as Calendula, poppy and love-in-a-mist. Take semi-ripe cuttings of shrubs such as Choisya, Hydrangea and Philadelphus. Root them in pots of gritty compost in a cold frame or even with a plastic bag tied over them. Brown patches on conifers may indicate an earlier infestation by cypress aphids. Telltale signs include black sooty mould along the stems and shed skin cases. Spraying earlier in the summer may have helped, but once damage is done, conifers can take a long time to recover. Where hedges are affected, prune out brown shoots and tie in neighbouring branches. Cuttings can be taken and grown on in the greenhouse.