June - an overview
This is the month where most of the space in the vegetable
plot is taken up. You can plant out vegetables such as courgettes,
sweet corn, french beans, runner beans which were sown indoors
in May. It is advisable to protect them under cloche or a fleece
for a couple of weeks from the wind and the cold. Make sure
sweet corn is planted in a block to aid pollination rather than
a row.
You
can make sowing of many varieties of vegetables early June. It
is worth making a succession of sowing seeds such as french bean,
lettuce, radish, beetroot at weekly intervals. This will extend
the eating season rather than having a glut for a couple of weeks
and then nothing.
Garlic
that was planted last October - November should be ready towards
the end of the month.
If have space plant out the winter vegetables, such as cabbage
and sprouts that was sow in February - March. Leeks that were
sown indoors in February - March should be planted out when
there is space in the garden. You make a hole with a dibber,
drop the leek into the hole and water in.
Any
dry sunny days make sure you get the hoe out and remove the annual
weed seedlings as much as possible. This is when you appreciate
sowing seed in straight lines as its quick to hoe up and down
the rows. The benefit of hoeing on a dry sunny day is the hoe
cuts through the weeds and they are left to dry out on the soil.
If it's done when the soil is wet the hoe clogs in the soil, and
any seedlings pulled up are more likely to put roots back into
the soil. If the soil is wet concentrate on hand weeding around
plants.
Take care when weeding with a hoe with plants such as onions
which have shallow roots and can be damaged if the hoe gets
too near, it's worth hoeing down the row and then hand picking
the weeds around the onions.
Any long dry spells water the crops that need it most. This
is usually seedlings and onions. Make sure you water in the
evening and give the ground a good soaking as little water will
do more harm than good.
Later
in the month runner beans will need to be supported, use 6ft canes
for each plant to go up. Peas will also need some form of support;
old sticks can be placed in the ground for support. Broad beans
depending on the variety may need supporting; usually a stick
at the end of each row with string tied round.
Check perennial plants such as asparagus and globe artichoke.
With asparagus, once it is established which can take a few
years you can pick a few asparagus from each plant over the
course of 6 weeks when you stop so the plant can rebuild for
the following year. Rhubarb depending on how early and frequent
it has been picked will need to be left to grow so it has enough
energy for next year.
Strawberries will be ready to pick early June onwards, it is
worth netting them otherwise birds will eat them. Same can be
said of other fruit such as red currants which will be fruiting
this month, if you can't net fruit, consider white currants
which birds seem to avoid.
If
you have a patch of comfrey it should be growing well and is worth
harvesting some of the leaves and adding to a rain water butt
to make a liquid fertilizer,
Greenhouse; plants such as tomato, peppers and cucumbers will
need water in the evening and morning. Tomatoes will need supporting
and side shoots will need pinching out. To help pollination
shake the main stem daily. Check for any pests such as greenfly
and whitefly.
Key dates:
If you have any advice or tips about gardening relating to this
month contact us and if suitable will add to the page - please
local to Haworth and the surrounding area only.
