Always June

“I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June”
L. M. Montgomery

It is my favourite month of the year. The garden borders and raised vegetable beds are really establishing and the fresh leaf buds and flowers are awakening all the senses ; there is the sound of birds and bees, the fragrance of a floriferous garden and freshly mown lawn, there is hard work ahead but also time, with the warmth of June to sit and appreciate the garden.

I certainly got what I asked for in my last post, the rain in May was never ending and after such hard April frosts it has certainly been a challenging time in the garden. In our garden, we feel we are a good few weeks behind in growth, but with warmer weather to come I’m sure our garden will catch up soon!

I am pleased to say that by the last day of May I had planted the rest of my vegetable plants, leeks , kale , squashes, pumpkin, marrow, runner and French beans and sweetcorn. I have set the first direct sowing of carrot and beetroot and salad crop.

As the flowers and lawns grow rapidly so do the weeds, keeping on top of them is really important and you can’t beat regular hoeing for this.

Jobs for the garden in June
Keep a close eye on your garden this month because as it grows, you will find plenty of job to keep you busy.

Water the garden thoroughly during hot spells, newly planted plants, young vegetables and container plants will need it most. It’s better to water once a week really well than every evening sparingly.

Keep mulching, as not only will you improve your soil, mulching during warm weather reduces water loss and suppresses weeds. Remember to water before munching as the mulch will act as a barrier against the water as well as keeping it in.
June is the time to fill in any gaps in your garden with summer bedding plants.

• Keeping on top of the lawn is a full time job this time of the year, as well as cutting and edging it is a good time to use a liquid fertiliser on it.
• Keep on top of rambling roses, by tying them in regularly.
• Remove suckers from rose bushes as they appear, remove as close to the root as possible.
• Keep checking for aphids and other common rose problems such as, powdery mildew and black spot.
• Get into the habit of dead heading flowers regularly. Keep tidying up plants, including staking tall ones.
• Keep tying in your sweet peas.