JUNE GARDENING CHORES

Prune spring flowering shrubs when they have finished blooming.  Be very careful with rhododendrons and azaleas, as it’s very easy to remove next years bloom.  If you can just leave them, it would probably be best.

Thin seedlings

Use balanced, organic fertilizers around flowers

Be sure to fertilize your annuals with liquid fertilizer. They’ll thank you for it by blooming continuously!

Stake tall perennials, like lilies, and Foxglove.

Are your tomatoes “caged”?  If not, get that done before it’s too late.

Use a pine needle mulch for blueberries

Be sure your lawn mower is set to cut the grass HIGH

Be sure to dead-head those iris, and remember the time to divide them comes next month.

Gladiolus corms can be planted-alternate their planting by two weeks or so.  That way they will bloom continuously.

Dead-head (prune off) spent flowers from plants and shrubs

Remove rhubarb seed stalks as they form.

Cutting back perennials such as dianthus, veronica and other similar shrubby varieties, will possibly produce a second blooming. How great would that be? They’ll also look better!

You can make softwood cuttings of shrubs this month through July.  Using a little rooting hormone would facilitate the process.

You may still plant container grown shrubs

Plant broccoli seed for fall harvest.

If you have a water garden, there’s still time to plant water
lilies.

House plants can be moved outside to a shady, protected spot.

These same houseplants can be lightly fed with half strength
fertilizer.

Mulch perennials and roses to keep down weeds and conserve moisture.

If you have an amaryllis, now would be the time to move it outside.

Pinch the leading stems of your chrysanthemum’s to encourage them to
be bushier and have more blossoms. Continue doing this every 6 inches
or so, as they grow.

If you have apple trees, hang red sticky-ball traps to control apple maggot flies. Small trees can get by with 2 balls. Larger trees should probably have 4-6 balls.

Stop cutting asparagus when the new spears get pinkie-finger thin. Let them grow into ferns instead. It will feed the roots.

Side-Dress veggies to give them a little boost

Have you got Hostas? Are there slugs chewing them? Try this solution, if you haven’t already.
Combine 9 parts water to 1 part common household ammonia and spray it on the hosta just before dark. When the slugs hit this, they will dissolve!

Are you remembering to turn the compost every once in a while? You should also wet it down if the hose is close by. Doing this will help it decompose quicker although it will eventually happen anyway!

Mow down any daffodil drifts that have “gone by”, if you haven’t already!

Order your bulbs so they arrive in time to plant in the autumn.

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THE IRISES LIGHT UP OUR GARDENS!

The irises are LOVELY right now.  Some of them are VERY heavy and really need to be propped up.  There are a few that have had their tops nibbled off by some critter, or crow perhaps.  Oh, well!

As you can see by the pictures I took this morning as I cruised through the Horizon House gardens, those irises are really showing off!

 

I went from deck to deck, to see all the majesty our gardeners have wrought.  If you haven’t gone down to look, you really should!

The C deck even has some veggies, with our little friend Peter in it’s midst!

The D Level gardens are popping as well!  And the bees are happy!

Going onto the Secret Garden, there are always surprises to be found!

What do you think?  Are the gardens ready for “June In Our Gardens”?

In June the Garden Committee gives a SPECIAL invitation for everyone to visit the gardens.  Every day, we will have tours, activities, lectures, trips, parties, lunches brought to enjoy together, and just a jolly time outside.  The Garden Committee hopes you’ll participate and join us for as many activities as you can.

Remember we not only garden for us, we garden for YOU!

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MAY GARDENING CHORES

MAY GARDENING CHORES FOR THE

PACIFIC NORTHWEST

Know your Horticultural Zone.  Find it here!

• Tulips should be dead-headed(remove spent flower)
• The grass can be mowed when it reaches 3-4 inches (sorry, but it IS that time again!)
• Hold off mulching until the soil is warm, or you’ll just keep the cold in!
• You can now plant lettuce, beans, corn and carrots right in the soil.
• They say that tomatoes can be planted when the lilacs bloom. Hmmm…  You might sprinkle a teaspoon of Epsom salts into the hole where they go to provide magnesium.  Remember that smaller plants will establish better than the larger ones, so go for the smaller potted plants rather than the big ones.  Be aware that temperatures MAY drop on some nights, so be prepared to  protect your seedings.
• Marigolds, zinnias and even nasturtiums are good to plant in and around your vegetables as well as the flower beds. They repel insects!
• You can begin to plant gladiolas at 2 week intervals
• You can fertilize any bulbs that are up.
• Stake your peonies before they get too big.  This web page about peonies is from Vermont.  However, the explanations are wonderful and the pictures are very helpful!
• Insert stakes for dahlias and other bulbs at planting time to avoid spearing tubers which might happen after growth has started.
• Harvest rhubarb by grabbing it at the base of the stalk and pulling firmly away from the crown, twisting just a bit. Be sure to throw the leaves into the compost as they are poisonous!
• You can prune your spring blooming shrubs just as soon as the flowers have faded.

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THE GARDENS HAVE COME TO LIFE!

Ah, yes!  Here they come…shoots, buds, flowers, and gardeners out snipping, digging, watering and just enjoying life in our gardens here at Horizon House!

Louise A. was out the other morning taking some lovely photos that I will share with you here.  They are ALL from our gardens, Level C, Level D and of course, the Secret Garden!  Go outside and enjoy them all!

 

My little succulent (mostly) garden thrives as well.  I give it a little watering when I’m down there, but don’t really worry too much about it.  It tolerates drought just fine!  Lucky for me, I guess.  

What does appear necessary to accomplish is some “dead-heading”.  The daffodils and even some tulips are beginning to look a bit bedraggled.  With bulbs it’s important to allow the leaves to feed the bulbs for next years blooms.  So, when you dead-head them, place your snipper down as low to the ground on the STEM that HOLDS THE FLOWER, and snip there.  Leave the surrounding leaves!  This is one of the reasons many gardeners plant their bulbs amidst other plants that come after and do a good job of hiding the gradually retreating bulb leaves.  As they turn brown, they too can be removed if you’d like.  Here’s a link to the University of Maryland Extension Service article about bulbs and their care, as well as dead-heading.

The other evening the Conservation Committee here at Horizon House hosted Dr. David Montgomery.  He spoke about his new book “Growing a Revolution:Bringing our Soil Back to Life”.  It was a wonderful program.  We all learned a lot.  It can even apply to our little garden plots here.

Enjoy being outside!  And Gardeners-HAVE A BLAST!

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RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY!

OK!  We’ve had enough now!  We’d like to get outside and enjoy the fruits of our labors!

This morning, the sun was shining and there were lovely white clouds in the sky.  I went out and checked the gardens…when I got back here to my apartment, it looks like RAIN again!  What’s with that?  But, at least I got to take some pictures.  The first very wet tulip is Ingrid L.’s. They are quite unusual and very pretty.

Let me say that everything looks GREAT…except for a few daffodil flowers that could really stand to be dead-headed.  Even a few tulips fell into that category.  They’d probably be OK for a few more days, but the rain took them out of (and into) their misery!  I didn’t take any pictures of THEM.  (The gardeners out there know who they are.)

If you “dead-head” those daffodils and tulips, remember to cut the flower stems WAY down.  LEAVE the leaves!  The leaves are where the bulbs get their nutrition for next year’s bloom.  This is the reason many gardeners plant their bulbs amidst other perennials, or even annuals that will cover the leaves, as they CAN be unsightly.

So, let’s see what I saw this morning on my travels in our Terraces.  Here’s a Leucothoe that is bragging with it’s new red growth, and lovely, drooping, bell-shaped, little flowers.

My own little succulent garden seems happy for the rain…and I’m happy for them!The rest of the photo’s I took as I walked.  Here’s an azalea from Barbara C.’s garden.

Someone remind me who this camelia belongs to?  I should take notes.  Perhaps it was on a common area?   At any rate, the flowers are happy that spring is here, and SO ARE THE GARDENERS!  Come visit us!

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APRIL GARDENING CHORES for the Pacific North West

Know your Horticultural Zone.  Find it here!

I have loaded this post with links you should find helpful.  Be sure to click on them for all kinds of extra information.  I have used Extension, or Horticultural sites, so you shouldn’t be troubled with any advertising when you go there.

• This is a good time to get that soil tested. Then there will be time to amend it before the season gets into full swing!
• Edge your flower beds to rid yourself of invading lawn rhizomes. Toss the edgings from this into the compost.
• Rebar, the steel bars used to reinforce concrete and masonry, make great garden stakes. They’re inexpensive, strong and durable and they come in a variety of sizes. You can find them in any building supply store.
• Start up your lawn mower so you know it doesn’t need a trip to the repair shop before grass cutting time. Also be sure the blades are SHARP.
• Sharpen your other tools while you are at it!
• The lawn would appreciate a good fertilizing at this time.
• Avoid working in the garden unless the soil breaks up in your hand if you squeeze a lump of it.
• Turn your compost 
• Hummingbirds Be sure the feeders are cleaned every time you refill them.  The food should be 1 part sugar to 4 parts water.  Bring to a boil and cool before putting into the feeder.
• Sow peas in the ground as soon as the frost is gone
• Continue with the tree pruning. Get rid of dead and diseased limbs
• As soon as your shrubs are done blooming, prune them as well.
• You can prune your berry bushes-check a reference.
• Rhubarb can be divided.  They are almost impossible to kill, so don’t worry about hurting them.
• This is a good time to pull out weed trees and old bramble branches. They tend to yank out easily because the soil is still soft and moist.
• Remove mulch from strawberries
• Put your trellis systems and peony supports into place.
• Pansies and other cold weather annuals can now be planted outside.
• It is the time to divide and plant perennials as well as cutting any of last years remaining growth away. It’s known as good housekeeping in the garden!
• If you have any bare root plants going into the garden, soak them overnight before planting. Also be sure to trim off any super long or broken roots.
• If you winter mulch your garden beds, begin to remove mulch when forsythia and daffodils bloom.
• Try planting scented flowers near walks!

I hope you’ll check out my book A Year In My New England Garden, which has a similar calendar along with vignettes of my gardening experiences in New England.  Your purchase of this book will help me cover my blogging costs.  It is inexpensive, and should be fun, helpful and make a great gift for gardening friends.

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GARDENING CHORES FOR MARCH

Know your Horticultural Zone.  Find it here!

• Bring home some wonderful blooming flowers to enjoy around the house!
• Be sure to fertilize that poinsettia.
• Check your stored bulbs to be sure they’re not being eaten by mice.
• Remove bulbs to be forced, from cold storage. Put them in a cool place until they begin to sprout, then bring them into the place you want to have them bloom.
• This is a good time to buy summer blooming bulbs.
• When your bulbs begin to sprout, give them a bit of fertilizer and scratch it into the soil.
• If you want to get spring blooming plants, like creeping phlox, look for the ones in bloom so you’re sure to get the color you want!
• Start seeds inside.
• Begonias can be started directly in the garden.
• Use maples as a guide.  When they start sending out leaves, the soil should be good for planting!
• Don’t plant in mud!
• Divide Perennials, and remember to water the new plantings if spring rains don’t materialize.
• You can plant gladiola a few  every two weeks (up until July) to guarantee summer long bloom.
• Once the soil has begun warming (remember the maples), get those veggie seeds & crops in the ground.
• This is a good time to send in a soil sample for testing.
• If you have a lawn, now would be the time to send the mower in for a tune-up.
• Fruit trees should be pruned of dead and diseased branches. Check a reference book and give them a general pruning as well.
• Keep your pruning shears away from spring blooming trees and shrubs, except to snip a few for inside forcing! (Although you should certainly remove dead and diseased branches.) Some good forcing candidates are: cherry, apple, dogwood and forsythia.  Just remember that whatever you cut off now will not be blooming in a few months!
• Cut back woody perennials like artemesia, lavender and russian sage to about 6 inches from the ground.
• Prune roses by removing old, damaged, diseased, and unproductive canes.  You can bring bush roses back to a foot or so tall, and shrub roses to three feet.
• Talk about pruning shears…sharpen and clean them before using.

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