Is your garden out of control? 5 tips for getting your yard back into shape this summer

Gardening is only a passion for a small percentage of the population.

Most people get excited about gardening in the spring. They clean up the yard and plant some flowers, then as summer arrives their attention is focused on vacations and other traditions. Eventually, distractions subside and they look around and realize some work is needed to clean up the yard and garden.

Here are some tips to get the yard back into shape.

Summer gardening tips for getting your yard back into shape

1. 'Dead head' your flowers

This is a term that refers to removing the old, spent flowers from annuals and perennials. With most annuals, removing the old flowers will stimulate new flower buds to form and open. This can also be true with certain varieties of perennials.

If your flowers are looking worse than just having spent flowers, the entire plant can be cut back to stimulate new growth. You can take off as much as two-thirds of the size of the plant. Then you can fertilize. Hopefully, within a few weeks, the plants will start to grow back so you can have better looking plants for the rest of the summer into the fall.

2. Prune shrubs

Summer flowering shrubs bloom on new growth, so trimming them back can also encourage a second or third set of flowers. Pruning encourages new growth that produces new blooms. This will happen with varieties of shrub roses such as knockout roses. It's also easy to do with dwarf spiraea and butterfly bushes.

3. Remove weeds

If the garden has been neglected, you probably have weeds that are thriving. Weeds that grow in beds with other desirable plants are tricky. Pulling them by hand does not always get all of the roots out of the ground. The leftover roots will allow the weed to grow back.

This is why the best way to eliminate weeds is to spray them with a nonselective weed killer, such as Hi-Yield Killzall. As this product name implies, it has the potential to kill anything that it comes in contact with. This can be a problem when weeds are growing among desirable plants. When using the spray, never do it on a windy day, and use a piece of cardboard as a shield to protect desirable plants. Killzall is absorbed through the weed's foliage, then goes through the inside to kill the roots. Since it moves through the weed, it does not hurt the soil.

After cleaning out the weeds, apply pre-emergent weed control to minimize any resurgence of weeds through the rest of the summer. These products keep weed seeds from germinating and growing. Hi-Yield Turf & Ornamental Weed & Grass Stopper is a great product to use. If you used one of these products in the spring, you should also reapply because the spring application is no longer effective.

4. Animal repellant

At this time of the season, make sure you are continuing to use animal repellants to keep your plants from becoming a snack for deer, as deer browse year-round.

5. Call the professionals

If you are looking at your yard thinking it needs more work than you can handle, this would also be a great time to reach out to a professional. Calling for a professional landscaping service now will set you up so you can have the work done this fall. Landscape companies that do great work are in high demand. Most are already scheduling work into the fall.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Garden out of control? 5 tips for getting your yard back into shape