A June border
June Gardening by Ewshot Gardener
It has been a relief to have some exceptional warmth in early May, but the cold wet Spring has made germination patchy.
Azaleas and rhododendrons are having a good year and primroses and Pulmonaria have been spectacular for weeks.
These are jobs you could be doing in June, among others:
Ornamental garden
* Gently remove spent flowers from Camellia, and rhododendron to make room for the leaf buds emerging behind.
* Harvest hellebore seeds once pods ripen (use gloves) and sow into pots or trays
* Divide bearded irises after flowering
* Sow biennials like sweet William, viola and wallflowers
* Divide spring-flowering bulbs.
Lawns
* Mow regularly but, if it is hot and dry, raise the cutting height.
* Apply a high-nitrogen lawn feed (again not when dry)
* Add clippings to the compost heap in small amounts; mix them with dry material to stop it all going slimy.
Kitchen garden
* Pinch out side shoots of cordon tomatoes
* Plant out pumpkins, squashes, courgettes and beans. You could direct sow both these and sweetcorn.
* Because sweetcorn is wind pollinated, do not plant them in a row but in a block, so the pollen gets to the stigmas of neighbouring plants.
* Harvest early potatoes when they begin flowering
* Sow autumn carrots.
* Net Strawberries and brassicas against birds.
* Sorry! But stop cutting asparagus and feed it so the crowns are ready for next year
* It looks as if apples and pears have set well in my garden. If yours have too, wait until after the June drop to thin fruit out! (bitter experience on my part here)
Greenhouse
* Damp down the greenhouse floor to increase humidity and discourage red spider mite
* Feed tomatoes with a high-potassium fertiliser
Gardens open for charity
2nd & 3rd June: Froyle gardens ; Maple Cottage, Searles Lane, Hook.RG27 9EQ
4th: Beechenwood farm, Hillside, Odiham, RG29 1JA
10th: Tylney Hall Hotel, Rotherwick RG27 9AZ
3rd and 17th: Dipley Mill, Hartley Wintney RG27 8JP
23rd &24th: East Worldham Manor and ‘Selborne’, Caker Lane, East Worldham, Alton GU34 3AX
Refer to www.ngs.org.uk for details of other gardens open.
For your diary
June 24th Crondall gardens are open for Phyllis Tuckwell
July 29th The Crondall Produce and Craft show