As June arrives with longer days and warmer temperatures, your garden is about to explode with new growth. It’s the perfect time to get your hands dirty. Here are 12 important steps to take in June to maximize your garden’s full potential and ensure a long and fruitful harvest!
1. Deadhead Old Flowers
Deadheading flowers produces more blossoms throughout the season.
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June is the perfect month for a gardening technique called “deadheading”. When a flower finishes blooming, it focuses its energy on producing seeds. However, if you remove these faded flowers (aka, the “dead heads”), you can redirect the plant’s energy back into producing new blooms instead!
2. Pinch Off Plants For More Bushy Growth
Pinching promotes a bushier plant with more blossoms or fruit.
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Similar to deadheading, gently removing the tips or long or leggy stems in June (also called “pinching”), helps to encourage your plant to focus its energy on growing outwards instead of upwards.
3. Prune Your Tomatoes
Pruning the tiny sucker branches from tomatoes encourages better growth overall.
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June is also a great time to prune “sucker” branches from garden tomatoes — the small shoots growing between the main stem and a large branch. If you can gently remove suckers when they are still just an inch or two long, you can redirect the plant’s energy into producing more tomatoes!
4. Stop Harvesting Rhubarb
Rhubarb leaves store energy so the plant can last through the winter.
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You’ll want to stop harvesting your rhubarb around the middle of June so that it can focus its energy on growing lots of leaves. Rhubarb leaves store energy for the plant and ensure a great harvest next year.
5. Leave Your Bulbs Alone
Even though the flowers are gone, don’t cut off your tulip leaves!
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After flowering, tulip leaves send energy back down into their bulbs underground. Don’t cut or pluck your tulip leaves, they need them to survive winter and bloom the next spring!
6. Add Mulch
Mulch also helps keep weeds out.
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To protect your plants from too much heat and sun in June, add a fresh layer of mulch to your garden. Mulch serves as an insulator, keeping the soil cool and moist for your plants.
7. Plant Heat-Loving Varieties
Many squash varieties are easy to grow.
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June is a great time to plant flowers and vegetables that love warm weather, like beans, squash, and zucchini. Heat-loving herbs like oregano, thyme, basil, and rosemary can also be planted in June.
8. Stake, Support, and Secure Your Plants
You can gently tie vines to a trellis to help train them where to grow.
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For tall plants like sunflowers, push a stake into the ground and tie it loosely to the stem for reinforcement. Staking or caging is great for providing support to tomato plants, eggplants, and peppers.
9. Add Color to Your Garden with Summer Flowers
Zinnias can attract butterflies to your garden.
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Those lovely spring flowers may be fading as June rolls around, but don’t worry — it’s the perfect time to plant summer annuals in your garden! Flowers like petunias, marigolds, and zinnias will provide endless color throughout the summer.
10. Thin Seedlings
Thinning seedlings helps provide the ideal spacing for your plants.
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If you have any newly transplanted perennials, June is a great time to show them some extra love. Thinning your seedlings reduces competition for resources so they can grow strong and healthy roots.
11. Succession Planting
With strategic succession planting, you can enjoy a continuous harvest.
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Instead of planting all your vegetables at once, strategically sow them at different intervals throughout the season. Referred to as succession planting, this method ensures a constant supply of veggies to harvest from summer through the fall.
12. Plant Container-Grown Shrubs and Trees
Trees grown in containers can be planted in June.
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Container-grown shrubs and trees are less likely to experience transplant shock because their root systems are already nice and cozy in their containers. Cooler June temperatures give them a chance to settle into their new home outside before the summer heat arrives.
13. Watch for Pests and Diseases
Remove leaves that show signs of disease.
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Your plants aren’t the only things that thrive with warmer temperatures — so do many pests and diseases. Keep an eye out for common garden pests like beetles and aphids, and watch for signs of fungus or powdery mildew.
14. Weed and Water
Water is important in June as temperatures rise.
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In the morning and evenings when it’s cooler outside, deeply water the base of your plants. This will help protect them from the heat and keep the water from evaporating. Weeds can also steal water and nutrients from your precious plants, so stay vigilant and pull them out regularly.
15. Fertilize
Research the requirements of each of your plants to ensure the correct fertilizer.
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June is an excellent time to give your plants an extra boost before summer hits with a balanced fertilizer. This will help provide the essential nutrients they need to produce beautiful flowers and delicious vegetables.
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