Hello, my dear green-fingered friends! As the sun stretches its golden arms across our borders, I can’t help but feel a flutter in my heart. You see, June is my favourite month in the garden calendar—the time when everything bursts forth in a riot of colours, scents, and sounds. So, let’s gather our floppy-brimmed hats, slip on our well-worn gardening gloves, and waltz into this delightful month together!
Planting and Replanting:
- As you harvest those spring vegetables, don’t leave bare spots behind. Add a generous scoop of fresh compost and tuck in your summer veggies. Whether it’s plump tomatoes, sassy peppers, or squash with a twinkle in its eye, they’ll thrive in the warm embrace of June soil.
- Oh, and darling, if you’ve got a patch of earth yearning for company, consider planting a few pumpkins. This is the perfect time to plant them in time for Halloween when you can make delicious soup from the insides and carve the outside into a scary face.
Vegetable wonders:
- Our tomatoes, bless their leafy hearts, need a bit of guidance. They don’t have tendrils, you see, so we must stake them up tall and proud and whisper sweet encouragement as they reach for the sky.
- And those cucumber vines? Well, they’ll climb their trellis without missing a beat.
Protecting berries:
- If you have a wisteria in your garden, be sure to prune it after blooming.
- Protect those dear little ripening berries with row covers or netting so they don't get eaten by those pesky little garden insects and instead get the chance to grow into large, ripe berries ready for making delicious jam.
Hanging baskets:
- Line your wire basket with about 1.5cm (½in) of moss. Gather moss from your lawn—it’s our thrifty secret - no need for fancy liners.
- Choose plants like argyranthemum, trailing geraniums, lobelia, petunias, and tumbling tomatoes. Imagine them spilling over the sides, like bubbles from champagne.
- Plant some perennials too: ivy, thyme, heuchera, and strawberries. These darlings will grace your baskets year after year.
- Water them daily—just a mugful—to keep them plump and happy. Avoid soggy roots, though!
Mulch Magic:
- Picture this: a thick layer of straw, leaves, or even shredded paper, lovingly tucked around your sprouting seedlings. It’s like tucking them in with a cozy quilt. The mulch keeps the soil moist and whispers, “Fear not, little ones; the weeds shall not pass!”
Water, But Not Too Much:
- With the sun cranking up the heat, our soil gets thirsty. Water your darlings, but only if they bat their leaves and ask politely!
So, as I sign off for another month I wish that your soil may be rich, your weeds be few, and your sun hat forever tilted just so.
Until next time, my dears, keep your hands in the dirt and your spirit in full bloom! Lily Greenfield x
