June Garden Chores

Don't miss the link to BCTV's Garden Chores video at the bottom of the page.

Lawns:

• Mow frequently enough to remove no more than 1/3 of the blade at a time.
• Maintain a 3 inch mowing height for fescue and leave clippings to recycle.
• Do not fertilize cool season lawns (fescue or bluegrass) until September.

Ornamentals:

• Prune spring blooming shrubs if not already done – azaleas, rhododendrons, forsythia, spirea.
• Daffodils can be divided. Dig the clumps, remove the yellowed leaves, and replant the bulbs just as you would in the fall.
• It is not too late to start container gardens to fill spaces where some color may be needed on a patio or in the garden. See what the garden center has left for annuals that will bloom all summer and add some contrasting foliage like dusty miller or sweet potato vine.
• Spend some time in the flower garden removing spent blooms. “Deadheading” will encourage some perennials to rebloom and keep annuals blooming all summer. Besides, the garden looks better without those dead flowers and seed heads.
• This is a good time to take cuttings to propagate many shrubs. Most stems would be classified as semi-hardwood cuttings in June and July. More information...

Fruits:

• If you did not lose the fruit on fruit trees with the last freeze, the fruit will need to be thinned to prevent tree damage from too much fruit and to increase fruit size. Apples, pears and peaches should be thinned before the fruit is larger than a nickel. Remove excess fruit until fruits are 4 to 6 inches apart.
• Fruit trees that do not have fruit this year may tend to produce overly vigorous growth, especially water sprouts in apples and pears. You can save yourself some pruning next winter by removing water sprouts now.
• If the strawberry bed is healthy, it can be renovated soon after harvest. More information...

Vegetables:

• Vegetables need a regular supply of fertilizer. Apply light doses of nitrogen - containing fertilizer 5 or 6 weeks after planting.
• Continue planting warm season vegetables. Beans, squash and cucumbers can be seeded through July so plant succession crops.
  Use 2 hands to pick peas, beans and cucumbers to prevent breaking stems.
• Vegetable gardens need one inch of water each week. Provide a good soaking if rain is not adequate.
• Check the label of all insecticides and fungicides before applying. Pay attention to the number of days to wait before harvest and to the crops and pests on the label.
• Remember that surplus produce can be donated to the Plant A Row For The Hungry collection at MANNA FoodBank. Take fresh fruits and vegetables to the warehouse at 627 Swannanoa River Road, Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information, view BCTV's June Garden Chores video, or call Buncombe County Cooperative Extension at 255-5522.