Let me start with a big shout out to all those fellow dads, fathers, daddies, and papas out there. I hope you all had the same fantastic day I did with a break from the garden to play with my little ones all day! That said this week’s post will be short and sweet due to a very busy couple of days!
Below are just a few tips on keeping up with your gardens for the rest of the month. June is a month filled with warmth as well as rain, and if you’re not careful your landscape can easily get out of control.
Weed, Weed, & Weed Some More
Weeds this time of year can come on fast and furious. Tiny little seedlings seem to become small bushes practically overnight! I LOVE my Fiskars Steel Extendable Rotary Cultivator for this job. You can just as easily use a regular garden ho, but I really do love this tool.
Dead Head Leftover Spring Bulbs
Cut or pinch off any seedpods that are forming on your spring blooming bulbs to encourage bulb strength and growth. You should also let the “greens” from the bulbs die back naturally, as the bulbs will feed on them to promote strong blooms for next year. You’ll be able to tell when it’s time to pull the greens as they’ll turn yellow and brown and pull very easily.
Dead Head Annuals & Perennials As Needed
If you have spent blooms on your recently planted annuals, or on your perennials you should dead head them regularly. Dead heading or cutting will promote blooms all summer long!!
Take Care of Your Containers
Containers can be tricky time of the year. We get a lot of rain, but on the other hand temperatures can be high enough to dry that rain away pretty quickly. Be sure to check your containers even if you think they’re getting enough rain watering.
Trim and Prune
Your bushes and trees are probably ready for their first pruning especially if you’ve had ample amounts of rain like most of the country the spring. I don’t like to cut or prune back to tight just yet, but a nice prune will encourage stronger, fuller looking bushes.
Keep an Eye Out For Pests & Disease
Be sure to keep an eye out for pests & disease. June can be a particularly wet month so be especially vigilant about slugs, mold, and mildew. You can choose to use chemicals here, but if you don’t mind doing a little research you can find many natural ways to combat these problems.
Mulch
If you haven't done so yet get that mulch down. Mulch will help keep weeds down, hold moisture, and control soil temps, all good things to maintain strong, healthy plants.
That looks to be a pretty good starter list of garden chores for June. There are tons of other things to do, but I’m going to go be daddy for a while longer. I’ll be limiting posts to twice a month while we’re “in season”. Be sure to check back in a couple weeks I’ll be doing a how-to on installing your own fire pit.
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