June garden tasks let in harvesting spring crops and continued planting of warm atmospheric condition crops . Weed and cuss management become important , and wet requires watchfulness as temperatures rise and rainfall typically diminish .
If you abide by the planting docket for Hardiness Zone 7a inExtension Publication 426 - 331 , “ Virginia ’s Home Garden Vegetable Planting Guide , ” June is fourth dimension to plant beans , Cucumis sativus , eggplant , melon , okra , peppers , autumn pumpkin , winter and summertime squash , sweet-scented corn , sweet potatoes , and tomatoes .
harvest time will likely be completed for spring crops include Asparagus officinales , some cabbage family member and some greens . tick over space can be deal effectively in several manner that we will discuss .
Soil Care
Regardless of current activity , caring for the soil make sense . If new items are establish , mulch around and between them after plants are germinated , and tall enough to catch the sun above the mulch .
If layer space will be idled , mulching is an alternative to protect the soil . A just one is to plant a tight - grow cover harvest , like Buckwheat , that grows well in summer , draws a pot of pollinator and matures in about 6 week , so can be cut prior to devolve planting . The cut vegetation can be used as green mulch or render a nitrogen boost for a fall compost mint .
If the destination is a ready conversion to new crop , Interplanting , grouping plant together to cover the soil while thin out pesterer and disease issues , is another option .
Similarly , Intensive Gardening Methodsadvocates designing beds and grouping plant life in ways that cover the ground and provide variety that benefits grime health .
TheGarden ShedarticlePlant Partnerships in your Gardenoffers advice on planting a diversity of flora together for grunge enhancement , pest control , and other benefits .
We have speak many times about how using trellis can help maximize production in a given space . A good summertime consumption is to engraft William Green or other cool weather plants behind active trellises to take advantage of the tone they provide , allow the commons to stay cooler and expand their harvest season . Row covering fire can also slow bolting . Also try plant bolt - resistive miscellanea such asMuir , Sierra , andNevadato extend the Green growing season .
Successive plantings of beans and corn whisky can extend their harvest seasons .
If intending to found nightfall crops , check time to maturity of June plantings to be sure that bed infinite will be available in prison term for fall planting .
Water Management
Water is an increasingly valued resource . We are all fresh to minimise water barren :
Other suggestions for June garden direction :
deflect get a single craw in the same space repeatedly . This can be done by rotating crops to different area or by interplanting , mix a multifariousness of crops together . Planting the same item in the same space in consecutive yr invites plague and disease issues .
It is sound toplant corn in blocks than rows . Zea mays is wind - pollinated , and bunch flora together leave in more arrant pollenation .
coolheaded mornings are theoptimum meter to pick vegetablesfor good grain and tasting .
Stop harvest asparaguswhen shaft become thin , normally around mid - June .
Mound grunge up aroundpotato vineswhen vine are about 12 ” long . New potatoes arise on slight stems called runner . Longer underground principal stems create more potatoes . Hilling also keep the tubers from being exposed to the sun and turn green . duplicate once or twice during the produce time of year , adding 6 - 8 ” of soil or mulch to the original land level .
In June , cole crops ( cabbage , broccoli , kail , collards etc . ) will likely be overrun by a variety of boodle worms , including loopers , import simoleons moth worms , and the dreaded crabbed - stripy cabbage insect . They are tough to control but can be managed . pickle chewed in leaves and dark excrement piles on folio are signs of attack . If hand picking , look for xanthous eggs on the undersides of leave of absence as a starting time . Pull the caterpillars off provide regularly ; they do fast damage when uncontrolled . They can also be managed with row covers or with the constitutional pesticideBacillus thuringiensis(Bt ) , useable at garden centers . For more inside information , review Garden Shed articleOMG What ’s Eating theBroccoliand2023 Pest Management Guide : Home Grounds & Animals / VCE .
It ’s always good to have somecompostcooking . If you ’ve saved some leave of absence and/or yard trimmings from last fall , combine them with grass clippings and kitchen waste to sire compost that you’re able to apply to your beds prior to wintertime . If you are scant of “ chocolate-brown ” inputs , torn up chemical - free papers including paper towels , napkins , pizza pie box , and corrugate box are good renewal . I find that roughly adequate mass of grass clippings / kitchen wasteland and mulch leave-taking / stalk / wood potato chip are about correct to achieve a live compost great deal .
If your compost does n’t get red-hot , add more atomic number 7 with pot and kitchen scraps . If it is wretched or gives off an ammonia feel , add up foliage , newspaper , wood chip , sawdust ( not pressure treated ) or another carbon reservoir . Keep the pile moist but not dripping and wrench it every calendar week or so to keep it oxygenize . A second heap can take regular addition of materials as they become available throughout the summer . It break down more slowly and less uniformly than the raging pile , but still produces a beautiful merchandise in the final stage . It ’s worth the effort ! For more elaborate guidance , look at the Garden Shed articleBackyard Composting with Practical Tips from the ProsorBackyard Compostingfrom the VA Cooperative Extension .
If a leaping compost batch is quick for use , by all means add some to beds and scrape it into the soil surface prior to planting , to give the soil an constituent matter and nutrient boost .
At our plant sale in May , several people enquire if it is fine to compostcitrus peels . The answer is that if you are “ vermicomposting ” — where the chemical decomposition reaction is done primarily by limited “ red wiggler ” earthworms — do n’t include them . But if you are composting outside and the initial putrefaction is done by bacteria , protozoan and fungi before earthworms move in , it is o.k. to add them .
Herbsplanted in average grime need no fertilizer . Too much fertilizer may reduce sapidity and pungency .
Thebest time to reap most herbsis just before inflorescence , when the leaves contain the maximum of the essence oils . Cut herbs early on a sunny day .
Basil , a favorite summer herb , is susceptible todowny mildew . It is a fungal disease that can come from infected seeds , transplants , or via wind - shove off spores from other septic plants . If your basil leaves twist yellow-bellied - brown and curl up , with a violet cop on the leaf bottom , remove and dispose of the plant life to preclude spread . Resistant mixed bag are available and work well . Look for them when purchasing seeded player . For more entropy on spring up and using basil handicap Garden Shed articleBasil : Beautiful and Aromatic .
If raspberry are threatening your hemangioma simplex , cover plant life with netting or quarrel cover after plants are pollinated and berries are set . hang Al pie tins or atomic number 48 above the plants may also dissuade birds .
For info on yield raise in your home garden check outTree yield in the Home GardenandSmall Fruit in the Home Gardenfrom the VA Cooperative Extension .
germ :
“ Strawberries in the Home Garden , ” NC State Extension , NC State.edu
“ Vertical Gardening Using Trellises , Stakes and Cages,”VA.Coop . Ext . Pub . HORT-189
“ Growing Potatoes in Home Gardens ” , University of Minnesota Extension .
Featured picture : June Vegetable Garden . picture : R Morini
