Summer is here! Make the most of the sun with June's Gardening Tips
By Alicia Paaso - Gardenscape Sales Team/RHS Level 3 Horticulturalist
June is the first month of summer, with the longest day of the year and an abundance of vibrant blooms such as roses, clematis, and poppies. The gardens are truly coming to life, making it a great time to visit open gardens for inspiration. With a slower pace than May, this is an exciting month where your vegetables begin to be ready for harvesting, and it’s the perfect time to simply soak in everything your garden has to offer.
One of June’s highlights is the display of gorgeous hanging baskets and containers. If you planted your containers and hanging baskets last month, you’ll notice more flowers appearing each week as the plants continue to grow and establish. To help displays last all summer, it’s important to deadhead the flowers as they fade. Removing the fading blooms encourages more flowers to appear while keeping your summer displays looking pristine. Additionally, remember to feed your summer displays with liquid feed every one to two weeks to support continuous flowering. If you haven’t planted your displays yet, there’s still time to do so. Plant into a water-retentive compost such as John Innes Multipurpose and let your creativity flourish!
June is an exciting month, as you can start harvesting from the kitchen garden.
Strawberries start being ready for picking, and lettuce and new potatoes will be ready for harvesting. To care for your vegetable and fruiting plants, remember to water regularly, especially in hot weather. For vegetables in late summer and autumn, consider sowing runner beans, courgettes and squash this month. Sweetcorn can be planted outside in blocks, and tomatoes that were started indoors can be moved outside. For an additional boost to support flowering and fruiting, apply sulphate of potash at the time of planting and every 4-6 weeks throughout the growing season. Also, spend some time pinching off the side shoots of your cordon tomatoes and make sure that they are supported.
As it gets warmer, it’s important to monitor your plants daily to check if they require watering. During hot spells, the soil can dry out quickly and may require watering twice a day, particularly hanging baskets. Remember to water your ericaceous-loving plants with collected rainwater whenever possible to prevent increasing the soil’s pH. To reduce the need for frequent watering, focus on improving the soil structure with soil conditioners for optimum water-holding capacity. Another effective technique is to add a thick layer of mulch, which slows down evaporation by blocking out direct sunlight. This also reduces the number of weeds germinating, thereby decreasing competition for water. If you have a garden with little shade, it may be worth investing in drought-resistant plants such as lavender, salvia and viburnum, which will thrive more easily in those conditions.
Other important gardening jobs for June include ensuring that tall perennials have sufficient plant support and tying in climbing plants to their framework. You can also sow biennials, such as foxgloves, which will flower next year. These are excellent for biodiversity, as they are rich in nectar for pollinators and their tubular flowers provide shelter for bumblebees.
Enjoy your June gardening!