IT’S time to get the best out of the summer, and get your flowers in tip-top condition for the blooming season ahead.

According to the Royal Horticultural Society’s advice for June, you should plant out summer bedding and seed-raised plants, if you haven’t already done so. Make sure they are well watered in and keep moist during dry weather.

Plant out cannas and dahlias once the danger of frost has passed. Gaps in herbaceous borders are best filled with annual bedding at this stage in the season.

Perennials such as hollyhock, delphiniums and lupins can be sown directly into drills outside once the seed heads have ripened and started to split naturally. If garden space is limited, you can sow them into pots and place them in a cold frame or by the base of a sheltered wall in filtered sunlight.

Thin out direct sowings of hardy annuals. This is best done in two or three stages at fortnightly intervals. Final spacings should be between 10-20cm (4-8in), using the upper limit for tall or spreading plants and the lower limit for smaller plants.

Prick out indoor sowings when they are large enough to handle without damage, potting them on and then planting them out once they are robust.

Spreading and trailing plants can become tatty and patchy. Trimming them back after flowering encourages fresh growth and new flowers.

Cut back dead bulb foliage if not done already. It is important to wait until the foliage dies down naturally, as cutting back too early can lead to blindness next year.

Cutting back clumps of spring-flowering perennials can encourage a fresh flush of foliage.

Cut back and deadhead Oriental poppies after flowering. Cutting them right back to ground level will stimulate growth of fresh new foliage, and perhaps even some new blooms. Mulching and feeding will help to support this new growth.

Euphorbias look a lot better if spent flowers are removed, cutting the flowered stem back to ground level.

Pinch out the leading shoots on plants such as Chrysanthemum and Helianthus to encourage bushy plants. However, if tall, thin sprays are preferred, they can be left unpinched, perhaps removing a few buds (known as ‘disbudding’) to encourage larger blooms.

Divide hostas as they come into growth. Divide Primula (primroses) after flowering, planting them in a nursery bed until they are ready for planting out again in the autumn.

Lift and divide overcrowded clumps of bulbs after they have finished flowering.