Gardens And Verses: June Tips

To plant a garden is to dream of tomorrow. —Audrey Hepburn

• Begin watering deeply at least once a week, between 10 p.m. and 9 a.m.

• Deadhead roses and flowers to promote more flowering.

• Plant cucumber, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant

• Continue to plant basil seeds every three weeks during the summer for pesto, salads and sandwiches.

• Remove and compost disease-free pea vines, lettuce, spinach and other cool-season crops.

• Seed the open area with more crops such as beans, basil or cover crops.

• Apply organic mulch to keep soil cool, retain moisture and keep weeds down.

• Construct a trellis for climbing vegetables.

• Late June: Harvest garlic and cure for about 4 weeks.

• Apply organic fertilizer.

• Harvest new potatoes.

• Continue to deadhead flowering annuals and perennials for continued bloom.

• Pinch back chrysanthemums weekly until the Fourth of July to keep the plant from blooming too early.

• Thin tree fruits for larger and sweeter fruit and to reduce limb damage. Apples: thin to 6-8 inches between fruit; peaches, 6-10 inches; apricots and plums 2-4 inches.

• Check for pests and diseases and stop them before they get worse.