Kalendarium Hortense - July

The Kalendarium Hortense was published by John Evelyn in 1683. It contains instructions for what a gardener should do throughout the year. The excerpt below is the list of what is to be done in the "Orchard and Olitory¹ Garden" for the month of June.

Sow Lettuce, Radish, &c. to have tender Salletting.

Sow later Pease to be ripe six weeks after Michaelmas.²

Water young planted Trees, and Layers, &c. and reprune now Abricots and Peaches, saving as many of the young likeliest shoots as are well placed; for the now Bearers commonly perish, the new ones succeeding. Cut close and even, purging your Wall-fruit³ of superfluous leaves which hinder from the Sun; but do it discreetly.

You may now also begin to Inoculate.⁴

Let such Olitory-herbs run to seed as you would save.

Towards the latter end, visit your Vineyards again, &c. and stop the exuberant shoots at the second joynt above the fruit (if not finished before;) but not so as to expose it to the Sun, without some umbrage.

Remove long-sided Cabbages planted in May, to head in Autumn; 'tis the best Cabbage in the World.

Now begin to streighten the entrance of your Bees a little; and help them kill their Drones, if you observe too many; setting the new invented Cucurbit-Glasses of Beer mingled with Honey to entice the Wasps, Flies, &c. which waste your store. Also hang Bottles of the same Mixture near your Red-Roman Nectarines and other tempting fruits, for their destruction; else they many times invade your best Fruit.

Look now also diligently under the leaves of Mural Trees⁵ for the Snails; they stick commonly somewhat above the Fruit: pull not off what is bitten; for then they will certainly begin afresh.

¹ - olitory: Of or pertaining to, or produced in, a kitchen garden.

² - the feast of St. Michael, which occurs on September 29th.

³ - fruit borne by trees trained against a wall.

⁴ - inoculate: insert a bud for propagation, cause to propagate, as by grafting or layering.

⁵ - Wall trees, see note #3.