Flowers looking grim? Here's how to give your garden a second chance this summer

As we enter the month of July and we look around our gardens, what we see may cause some mixed feelings. We will see some areas that we are very proud of; these are the areas that are growing as we expected or better. Then, there will be other areas that will be the opposite which are struggling. These are areas causing some head scratching trying to figure out what’s going on in these spaces.

This is the nature of gardening. Sometimes things that are supposed to come easily turn out to be difficult and things that are known to be difficult come easy. Sometimes it’s using the right strategy and other times it’s pure luck. July is a good time to get out into the garden and tune some areas up so they start looking better for the rest of the season.

Your magic wand can come in the form of a pair of pruning shears. There could be perennials in your yard that are looking rough. Maybe they're early season bloomers that are already past their prime. They could also be plants that have caught a fungal disease. But perennials are very forgiving and welcome to second chances.

If you have perennials that are looking rough, you can cut them back almost to the ground. Within a few weeks, the plants will start to produce fresh new foliage. As this happens the plant will have the potential to produce a few new blooms.

Annual flowers that are not growing as you like can also be given a second chance with a hard shearing. You might have some flowers that are growing too well; they may be getting too tall and flopping over. You might also have flowers that you have not been removing the dead flowers. Some annuals are also vulnerable to diseases. In any of these situations, you can also cut the plants back to remove as much as two-thirds of the foliage. This will get the plants to produce fresh foliage.

With annuals, you should have them on a regular feeding schedule from the time when you plant them. If you haven’t, it’s never too late to start. For fertilizer, you always have the option of using a dry granular product or a liquid fertilizer. They work in different ways, but either way is good to do.

When it comes to a granular product the best to use are the fertilizers that are described as “slow release.” These are fertilizers you apply directly to the top of the soil. They are made to slowly release the nutrients over a long period of time. Fertilome has two great fertilizers that work this way: Start-N-Gro and Gardencote.

The liquid options are fertilizers that are in a powder form to be mixed with water. Then, they're applied as you are watering your plants. Miracle Gro is an example of this type of fertilizer. A similar product I like better is called Blooming and Rooting Fertilizer, also from Fertilome. I like this product because of the high amount of phosphorus it contains, which is 58%. As described by the name, phosphorus is great for encouraging flowers and root growth.

Annuals really perform best when they are regularly fertilized. In our gardens and planters, I combine both of these methods of fertilizer. I use the Start-N-Gro when I first plant, then I give them a second application at this time of the season. Once a week, I use the Blooming and Rooting as I am watering.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Flowers looking grim? Here's how to give your garden a second chance