LANDSCAPING : Most of the day belongs to flowers — a fine stretch for transplanting and dividing. Pot-grown dahlias that have outgrown their containers can go straight into a prepared border: set tubers 10 cm deep, 60 cm apart each way, and water in with a full watering can. Cosmos seedlings started under cover transplant well now — space them 30 cm apart in rows 40 cm wide and pinch the tip of each plant to encourage branching. Zinnias follow the same rhythm: plant out at 25 cm in the row, rows 30 cm apart. On sandy soils, work in a shovelful of compost per planting hole to help retain moisture through the last weeks of summer heat.
ORCHARD : Wisteria pruned in late July may have pushed new laterals already — count five or six leaves from the main framework and cut cleanly with sharp secateurs. Fig trees benefit from a light tidy too: remove any crossing or damaged shoots to keep airflow through the canopy. Kiwi vines respond well to summer pinching; nip the growing tips of fruiting laterals back to five leaves beyond the last fruit to concentrate energy where it counts.
VEGETABLE PATCH : Before the evening sign change shifts energy toward leaves, use the flower-day hours to transplant broccoli and cauliflower seedlings raised under cover. Broccoli goes in at 50 cm in the row, rows 60 cm apart; cauliflower needs a little more room — 60 cm in the row, rows 70 cm. Firm each plant in well and water generously. After the sign change, the energy turns toward leaf crops — a good moment to check on strawberry runners and peg down any you want to root for next year’s bed, spacing them 30 cm apart with the crown sitting at soil level.