Gardening Advice and Helpful Tips
Your gardening advice for June.
Donna Turner
Plant Area Supervisor
10 jobs to do in the month of June!
1. Berry happy
Strawberries and other soft fruits need a bit more attention in June. Techniques such as placing a bed of straw or gardening fleece as a cushion will help them ripen at a nice rate. Remember to start netting your strawberries to prevent the wildlife in your garden from enjoying them before you do!
2. Mind the gap
Most spring flowers will have come and gone, leaving gaps in your borders. Fill any bare spots with bedding plants, such as salvia, begonias and pelargoniums for an instant pop of summer colour.
3. Grass roots
I like to feed the lawn now as the warmer weather means there’s a better chance of germination. Scrape any moss off bare patches and add a layer of good topsoil or lawn sand and level off before applying seed and working it into the soil. Water well.
4. Bees knee’s
Bees need all the help they can get. Some of my favourite pollen-laden flowers include cornflowers, asters, calendulas, marigolds, nasturtiums, foxglove and viper’s bugloss. Other good pollinators come from the Lamiaceae family such as thyme and lavender.
5. Tomato time
A rewarding weekend job is to plant up a hanging basket filled with tumbling tomatoes, three plants to a basket. Position in a sunny spot, away from the wind, water every day and feed often. They will produce a crop of mini toms for summer salads, straight from the patio.
6. Poppy love
If you sow poppies direct now, many varieties will flower within eight weeks. The oranges are always a hit, such as Papaver rupifragum and Eschscholzia californica. They work perfectly with lavenders and they’ll self-seed freely for more plants next year.
7. Pest control
Try and keep a look out for pests as you go, especially greenfly and blackfly which love dry, warm weather. Deal with them quickly, picking off by hand if the infestation isn’t too large or using an appropriate product if things are getting out of hand.
8. Coming up roses
Roses are at their peak in June, but it’s important to deadhead regularly so more flowers can be produced. Snap them off just below the head. I think this is a job worth doing at least once a week- and preferably daily – in mid-summer.
9. Cut backs
June is a great month to cut back spring flowering plants such as mock orange (philadelphus), forsythia and winter flowering honeysuckle (Lonicera x purpusii). Just chop some stems back to ground level to encourage new growth.
10. Chill time
June is a magical month for gardeners. Make sure to take time out to enjoy the fruits of your labours and soak it all in.
Feature plant: Cannas
If you’re looking to add some drama to your garden, cannas are wonderful statement plants for a large pot or border. Growing as tall as you, their lush leaves are topped with flowers in tropical shades of pink, orange, red and yellow. Tropicanna Black has dark purple leaves and red flowers, while Phasion has leaves striped in orange, pink and green, and orange flowers.
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October on the Veg Plot...
October is a great month to get ahead in the veg patch, writes Ruth McNamee.
Choose a sunny sheltered spot to sow broad beans. The variety Aquadulce Claudia does well from autumn sowing. Sow a double row with seeds 20cm apart. These plants should germinate, stand over winter and quickly establish when the weather warms. The crop can be enjoyed a couple of weeks earlier than spring sown seeds.
You can start to plant out garlic this month 15cm apart in rows 30cm apart. This can be left to next month if preferred. And there is still time to plant out overwintering onions. Make a shallow drill and place the sets pointy end up 15cms apart in rows 30cms apart. Onions are ready to harvest early next summer. Try onion and garlic in big pots and keep in a sheltered spot for the best results.
October is a great month to get your permanent planting done. It’s a good time to establish your fruit and asparagus beds while the soil is still warm from the summer heat. Rhubarb and asparagus crowns will now be available in the garden centre. Prepare the beds by removing all weeds. These crops will be in these beds for many years so it helps to give them a good start.
May is the month where strawberries flower so mulch plants with straw.
Prune early flowering shrubs such as the Forsynthia and Weigela.
Direct sow basil next to tomato seedlings to help draw white fly away.
Veg seeds that can be sown outdoors include courgette, beetroot and sprouts.
Lift and divide your spring bulbs and plant where you want for next year.
Check all foliage for lily beetle and greenfly and dispose of any found.
Gardening Jobs for January
Buy seeds to be sown in January or February.
Buy seed potatoes, onion sets and garlic.
Appraise the garden for form and structure, and plan alterations and additions.
Plant window boxes and containers for seasonal colour.
Protect vulnerable plants from frost and wind damage.
Firm in any autumn-planted shrubs and border plants lifted by frost.
Knock snow off branches, especially on conifers and hedges, if they are bending under the weight.
Check stakes and ties on newly planted trees.
Remember the birds in the garden and put out food for them, especially when it’s frosty.
