June Gardening Taskssubmitted on 30 May 2013
As the days lengthen and temperatures rise, the plants in your garden should be putting on a spurt, but so will your weeds, so the first job in this list of tasks for June is
1) Hoe borders regularly to keep down weeds.
2) Cut lawns weekly unless there is a drought in which case they are best left a bit longer.
3) Plant your tubs with summer bedding if you haven't yet done it, preferably using loam-based compost which holds water better than peat-based.
4) Put out your summer hanging baskets and containers.
5) Keep hanging baskets and tubs well watered using collected rainwater from your water butt, or grey water from washing-up etc. wherever possible. Try not to waste water.
6) Liquid feed hanging baskets and containers every two to four weeks.
7) Plant out summer bedding plants and keep them well-watered as necessary.
8) Plant out dahlias and cannas, unless you are expecting a late frost.
9) Stake tall or floppy plants to prevent wind damage and to help them look their best.
10) Cut back spring flowering perennials - remove the old foliage, lift and divide large clumps and replant with plenty of water and fertiliser.
11) Divide primulas after flowering and plant them in a nursery bed or pot them up until you plant them out again in the autumn. Now is also the time to divide hostas.
12) Fill gaps in herbaceous borders with bedding plants.
13) You can still sow some late-flowering hardy annuals like calendula, clarkia and godetia as these are also quick-growing. Remember to thin them out as required along with any other hardy annuals you have sown direct.
14) Trim back spreading and trailing plants after they have flowered to keep them looking neat and to encourage new flowers and fresh growth.
15) Pinch out the leading shoots on plants such as Chrysanthemum and Helianthus to encourage bushy plants.
16) Prick out, pot on and then plant out indoor sowings when they can be handled without damage.
17) Tie in Sweet peas to their supports so they grow up to make a good show.
18) Once they have finished flowering divide overcrowded clumps of bulbs.
19) Cut back bulb foliage once it has died down naturally.
20) Pot on any rootbound plants.
21) Winter bedding plants such as winter pansies can be sown until July, as can spring bedding plants for next year.
That should keep you busy until next month. Let's hope June brings good weather for the gardener.
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