The following "reminder list" is based on a Zone 6a growing region, which is centrally located for the North American growing areas. For areas north of Zone 6a add roughly one week per zone for any times given. For areas south, subtract roughly one week per zone. Don't know your hardiness zone? Find it quick on our "Plant Hardiness Zone Map".

June is the month when most of your hard work in spring starts to come into fruition. Vegetables start being ready to harvest, like beans, early corn and tomatoes, Brassica's like cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower are ready, as well as those wonderful squash. Strawberry's are ready to pick and the raspberry's are right behind. The spring-flowering bulbs are finished and the summer-flowering plants are getting into high gear. June is also the month when the weather starts heating up and the rains of spring dwindle. The grass is growing at full throttle, as well as the bugs. The nights are getting warm and the BBQ grill beckons you to enjoy the weather on your patio with family and friends.

Around The Garden

• Start applying mulch to plants when the soil reaches 65° (*** C) for cool season crops like cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, etc. and 70° (*** C) for warm season crops like tomatoes, corn, squash, beans, melons, etc. to reduce weeds, water consumption and cool the soil.

• Set soaker hoses in place before applying mulch and then mulch over the top of the hoses. This makes the most efficient use of the water and the top of the mulch dryer, which prolongs its useful life and helps keep it from compacting.

• You will begin to see the first fruit on your strawberries by early this month. The birds will enjoy them very much if you don't provide some protective netting over them. Newly planted strawberries should have the blossoms picked off until they become well established.

• Renovate strawberries after first harvest & thin out excess plants, remove weeds, fertilize and apply a layer of mulch for weed control.

• Allow one or two runners to develop from the most productive strawberry plants.

• June through July. Repeat plantings of corn and beans to extend harvest.

• If the weather turns hot (90 degrees F or above) spray the blooms of newly planted tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, pumpkins, etc. with blossom set to start fruit production.

• Fertilize fruiting plants such as tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, squash, etc. every month with a slow-release fertilizer during fruit production.

• Fertilize herbs sparingly with an organic fertilizer (preferably a slow release form). Over-fertilization will reduce the essential oils in herbs and reduce the quality.

• Keep the flower stalks cut off of onions and garlic.

• Apply Liquid Fence every 10-14 days to deter rabbits and squirrels.
• Japanese beetles become active this month as well as Mexican Bean beetles, Potato beetles and a host of others. Trap or start a rigorous spray program immediately. Beetle traps, Sevin, Neem or Rotenone may be used for effective control and should be started at the first signs of beetle ativity.
• As soon as cucumber and squash vines begin to run, start dusting with vegetable and flower dust or weekly applications of insecticidal soap and Bt to control cucumber beetles and squash vine borers.

• The weather will start getting warm and dry this month, monitor the moisture for all plants and supplement with irrigation whenever the plants receive less than an inch of water per week. Consistent watering is important. Inconsistent watering can cause tomatoes to crack and blossom end rot to occur.

• With care, planting can continue all summer long. To help reduce stress, avoid planting or transplanting when the temperature is over 85 degrees or during the hottest time of day. Reduce transplant shock by watering in new-plantings with a starter fertilizer with a root stimulator. Keep new plants well watered until established and mulch them well.

• Staking flowers as they grow ensures straight growth and protects neighboring plants. Apply Super-Phosphate to floppy plants to strengthen stems and increase blooms.
• Deadhead your annuals to encourage more flowers.
• Gladiolus corms can still be planted for successive blooms.

• Holes in your hosta leaves can be a sign of slug or snail damage. Apply slug bait or repellant barriers around effected plants.

• Apply a fertilizer (chemical or organic) of your choice to your annuals now and again each month to keep them blooming profusely. Slow release works the best and if you use a dry fertilizer, make sure to work it into the soil lightly and water it in well.

• Organic fertilizers such as Fish Emulsion Fertilizer, liquid kelp or any of the other organic fertilizers may be used every two weeks. The organics are non-burning (especially important in the hot weather!) and add many of the minerals that get washed out by daily watering.

• Continue thinning your vegetable seedlings to provide ample room for growth.
• Mound the soil up around your potato plants. It does no harm to the plant if the soil covers the stem. In fact, potatoes will develop roots and often tubers along the stems where they are in contact with the soil. Tubers near the surface which are exposed to sunlight will turn green and poisonous. As early potatoes begin to die back, reduce watering.

• Mound soil over developing onion and garlic bulbs to reduce sunburn. Reduce watering when the tops start to yellow and wither.

• Give the compost pile a good turn and keep moist. Hot, dry weather will dry it out quickly.

Around The Landscape

• Mum's planted outdoors start to bloom this month. For larger blooms of even height in fall, pinch out all bloom buds and sheer the plants to an even height. Keep all buds pinched until the end of July for larger fall blooms..

• Early June scout for euonymus scale when catalpa starts to bloom.

• Aphids are active this month. A strong blast from a hose, insecticidal soap or Neem are effective.

• Clean up all diseased foliage on peonies and other perennials to prevent spread of fungal diseases. Apply dusting Sulfur or fungicide at the first sign of disease, and reapply until all signs of fungus disease disappear. Never discard diseased plant parts into the compost pile. Either burn them or dispose of them into your normal waste stream (trash)

• When perennials such as Bleeding Heart, Oriental Poppies or Trillium die-back in the summer, clean up withered foliage and plant annuals for summer color.

• Look for bare spots in your beds or where plants have died. Plant blooming annuals for attractive, instant color spots.

• Remove dead foliage from bulbs. Lift, divide and store spring bulbs. Replant in fall and fertilize with bulb food.
• Mosquito larvae will not develop in water that is circulated with a pump or fountain. For ponds or water bowls that do not have circulated water, use bacillus thuringensus (bt) to kill the mosquito larvae (often sold as donuts that can be floated on the water).
• To prevent black-spot and fungus diseases, do not water the foliage! Hand water at the base of the plant or use soaker hoses buried in mulch. If overhead watering is necessary, make sure to water early in the morning so that water evaporates from the foliage quickly.
• Mow cool season grass as necessary to a length of 3" to 3 1/2". Cut slightly higher if the weather is especially dry and hot.
• Fertilize monthly, warm-season lawns such as zoysia, bermuda, etc.
• Monitor lawns for newly hatched white grubs and apply grub control or Milky Spore to kill Japanese Beetle Grubs.
• Spray to kill any broadleaf weeds in the lawn when the temperature is below 80 degrees. Water the lawn thoroughly a day before spraying.
• Trees and shrubs may be planted throughout the summer. To help reduce stress, plant in the early morning or late afternoon and water thoroughly. An application of anti-desiccant and root-stimulating transplant fertilizer immediately before transplanting can also help reduce transplant shock. After transplanting use a transplant fertilizer with root stimulator to help the plant become established. Mulch well and keep watered.
• Make last applications of fertilizer to trees and shrubs before the weather turns hot and dry.
• Watch for spider mite activity. Hose off affected foliage on a regular basis to reduce activity. It may become too hot to use chemical pesticides, but organic  Neem or Insecticidal Soap can be effective.
• Watch for bagworms on evergreens. Spray with Bt products as they emerge.
• Treat blight or die-back in your azaleas and rhododendrons this month, apply Bordeaux fungicide.
• If leaves appear yellow or faded, an iron deficiency called chlorosis may exist. Apply chelated liquid iron to encourage vigorous, dark green growth.
• Divide spring flowering perennials like, Primroses, Arabis, and Aubrietia when they finish blooming.
• Check your roses for mildew, aphid, black-spot or other insect or disease problems and if they appear take steps to control them right away.
• Roses will need to be fertilized each month through the summer until late August.
• Make sure your climbing roses are securely tied into position. Prune them after blooming.
• This is a good month for shearing, pinching or pruning Junipers, Cypress or Conifers.
• Shear hedges this month.
• After natural fruit drop in late June, thin fruits on apple, pear, peach, and apricot trees carefully to produce larger, better fruit. Peach trees need 50 to 75 leaves per fruit to manufacture food for both fruit production and tree maintenance. Apple trees need 30 to 40 leaves per fruit.
• Prune suckers and water sprouts from all fruit trees.
• Watering will start in earnest this month. Keep a close eye on your sprinkler system for proper operation, damaged heads, blocked spray patterns, etc. Use automatic timers to control the irrigation cycles and avoid those "oops - I forgot to turn off the water" incidents.
• Use a lawn rain gauge and make sure to apply one inch of water each week. Avoid watering to the point of runoff. Use an on/off watering sequence until the entire inch is applied.
• Install soaker hose rings under mulch around trees and shrubs.

• Give the compost pile a good stir and monitor the moisture level carefully, as it will dry quickly. The pile should maintain the consistency of a wrung out sponge.

On The Patio

• Keep a close eye on your container plants and provide water twice daily if needed.

• Acidic fertilizer for acid-loving plants should be used on plants such as gardenia, jasmine, orchids and ferns this month.
• Pinch back any annuals, Fuchsias, Geraniums, Cosmos or any other plants that might be getting a little leggy.
• At exactly 12:00 Noon, on June 15th, set your sundial for 12:00 to get the most accurate time reading throughout the summer.
• Change the water in your bird bath regularly. Standing water may become a breeding ground for mosquito larvae.

• Shade will soon be welcome on the patio. Get patio umbrellas out and cleaned if needed. Apply a fresh coating of fabric protector if needed to protect them from the elements and from fading.

In The Shed

• Potatoes, onions, garlic, squash, bulbs and corms, etc. need to be dried and cured before storage. Build some dedicated drying racks away from the sun and rain.

• Hang bunches of herbs in small bundles up to dry for later use. Secure stems with a rubber band to keep them tight as they dry. Hang upside down in a warm, dry location until thoroughly dry.

In The Home

• If you haven't done so already, place tropical plants outside, in the shade, water and feed regularly as they will grow quickly in such ideal conditions.
• Summer is a good time to repot houseplants and orchids.

For Yourself

• Take time after a day in the garden to spend some "down-time" under an early summer starry sky. The sights, sounds and smells will amaze, relax and invigorate you.

• Take advantage of the yet still a touch cool nights of June to enjoy an outdoor fire and perhaps roast a hotdog and marshmallow or two. It's amazing how such a child-like activity will relax you and lift your spirits.

• June is a great time to take a walk in the woods and one of the best months to teach kids about nature. All of nature is out in full force and the weather isn't yet oppressively hot.

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The information presented in a gardeners calendar is derived from many sources including practical experience of the writer. While we strive to present only fact5ual information, no guarantee is given, whether expressed or implied as to its completeness or accuracy. PO'Folks Ozark Mountain Enterprises accepts no responsibility for any damages resulting from the use of this material. As with all things, PO'Folks Ozark Mountain Enterprises urges all readers to exercise sound reasoning before applying any information they may obtain from any source.