Ask a Garden Designer: What to Do in the Garden in June
June is an exciting month in the garden, with incredible scents and an abundance of blooms to enjoy, so let's get started!
Your borders are filling out rapidly, the roses are blooming, trees are beginning to bear small fruits and insects are busy collecting nectar. June is a busy time in the garden, and the longer days and warmer weather make it a wonderful time to be outdoors – especially as now you can start to enjoy the fruits of your labour.
Encourage pond life
Ponds are full of activity in June, and, with longer, sunnier days, water plants really start to flourish. Blanket weed can be a pain at this time of year, but a lot of insects appreciate a bit of blanket weed (tadpoles often nestle themselves in it), so don’t be too concerned about having a little of it in a natural pond. If you do remove the weed, use a cane to gently pull it out (some will break away), then leave it on the side of the pond for a while before disposing of it, to let all the little creatures clamber back into the water.
Look out for some beautiful visitors to ponds now, including damselflies and dragonflies flashing their iridescent wings.
Ponds are full of activity in June, and, with longer, sunnier days, water plants really start to flourish. Blanket weed can be a pain at this time of year, but a lot of insects appreciate a bit of blanket weed (tadpoles often nestle themselves in it), so don’t be too concerned about having a little of it in a natural pond. If you do remove the weed, use a cane to gently pull it out (some will break away), then leave it on the side of the pond for a while before disposing of it, to let all the little creatures clamber back into the water.
Look out for some beautiful visitors to ponds now, including damselflies and dragonflies flashing their iridescent wings.
Mow the lawn weekly
With the warmer weather, grass will grow more strongly now and you’ll need to do a weekly cut.
Try to mow in a different pattern each time to ensure that the grass doesn’t all grow in the same direction. You can also feed your lawn now with a liquid fertiliser if it’s looking a bit tired. Don’t forget to trim the edges, too – it really makes a difference and can make the garden look immediately neater.
If you have a newly laid lawn, don’t let it dry out: once it has shrunk and the edges of turf curl up, it’s very hard to get it back to the way it first looked.
Hate mowing? Discover everything you need to know about artificial grass
With the warmer weather, grass will grow more strongly now and you’ll need to do a weekly cut.
Try to mow in a different pattern each time to ensure that the grass doesn’t all grow in the same direction. You can also feed your lawn now with a liquid fertiliser if it’s looking a bit tired. Don’t forget to trim the edges, too – it really makes a difference and can make the garden look immediately neater.
If you have a newly laid lawn, don’t let it dry out: once it has shrunk and the edges of turf curl up, it’s very hard to get it back to the way it first looked.
Hate mowing? Discover everything you need to know about artificial grass
Make compost
There’s so much growth in the garden at this time of year and, with weekly lawn mowings, there is plenty of material to be composted. Ideally, you need to have equal amounts of grass clippings, shrub prunings, woody clippings and flower heads to get the right nitrogen-and-carbon-rich mix.
Keep the compost moist – covered with an old piece of carpet – and turn it weekly, and you should have the start of a great compost in 10 weeks’ time. It will save you lugging bags of it from the garden centre – and it’s free!
Watch out for slowworms inside compost bins – last year I got such a shock when my compost was alive with three of these snake-like creatures. I lifted the carpet and nearly fell onto my rake!
There’s so much growth in the garden at this time of year and, with weekly lawn mowings, there is plenty of material to be composted. Ideally, you need to have equal amounts of grass clippings, shrub prunings, woody clippings and flower heads to get the right nitrogen-and-carbon-rich mix.
Keep the compost moist – covered with an old piece of carpet – and turn it weekly, and you should have the start of a great compost in 10 weeks’ time. It will save you lugging bags of it from the garden centre – and it’s free!
Watch out for slowworms inside compost bins – last year I got such a shock when my compost was alive with three of these snake-like creatures. I lifted the carpet and nearly fell onto my rake!
Deadhead roses
A regular task throughout summer is deadheading, and in June, roses are generally at their peak. Remove any flowers that have faded by snapping them off just below the head, and you will encourage more blooms to appear.
Other plants may benefit from deadheading, too, or a light chop with the shears to promote new blooms later in the summer; this will prevent the plant’s energy going into the production of seeds. Hardy geraniums and nepeta can be trimmed back quite hard with shears and will soon shoot again. You can also carefully remove dead rhododendron flowers now with your fingers, pinching them out from the centre; you will see the small new leaf buds are just behind, so this needs a delicate touch.
A regular task throughout summer is deadheading, and in June, roses are generally at their peak. Remove any flowers that have faded by snapping them off just below the head, and you will encourage more blooms to appear.
Other plants may benefit from deadheading, too, or a light chop with the shears to promote new blooms later in the summer; this will prevent the plant’s energy going into the production of seeds. Hardy geraniums and nepeta can be trimmed back quite hard with shears and will soon shoot again. You can also carefully remove dead rhododendron flowers now with your fingers, pinching them out from the centre; you will see the small new leaf buds are just behind, so this needs a delicate touch.
Harvest your own herbs
If you are like me and love cooking using fresh herbs, or simply like planting them among other perennials (bronze fennel makes a wonderful contrast with allium, for example, and angelica and lovage, which are both quite tall, look lovely among other perennials), then why not make a small herb garden as a weekend project.
You can grow herbs in pots, planters, parterres – even in old wooden crates and pallets. Never grow mint with other herbs or it will take over and run everywhere. And chives self-seed, so you may need to thin them out to keep them in check. Thyme likes very good drainage, as do sage and rosemary, so work some grit into the soil.
By cutting your herbs regularly and using them in your cooking, you will have healthier and bushier plants that smell wonderful.
If you are like me and love cooking using fresh herbs, or simply like planting them among other perennials (bronze fennel makes a wonderful contrast with allium, for example, and angelica and lovage, which are both quite tall, look lovely among other perennials), then why not make a small herb garden as a weekend project.
You can grow herbs in pots, planters, parterres – even in old wooden crates and pallets. Never grow mint with other herbs or it will take over and run everywhere. And chives self-seed, so you may need to thin them out to keep them in check. Thyme likes very good drainage, as do sage and rosemary, so work some grit into the soil.
By cutting your herbs regularly and using them in your cooking, you will have healthier and bushier plants that smell wonderful.
Create a cosy nook
Make the most of all the colour and fragrance in the garden right now by creating a seating area where you can enjoy being outside. This doesn’t have to mean a patio dining set – you could bring indoor furniture outside and construct a little room with throws, small tables and cushions.
Placing a bench against a sunny wall with scented climbers, or under a pergola covered with a tumble of vines, creates a lovely seating area for relaxing with friends. What could be nicer!
Find more ways to take your interiors style outdoors
Make the most of all the colour and fragrance in the garden right now by creating a seating area where you can enjoy being outside. This doesn’t have to mean a patio dining set – you could bring indoor furniture outside and construct a little room with throws, small tables and cushions.
Placing a bench against a sunny wall with scented climbers, or under a pergola covered with a tumble of vines, creates a lovely seating area for relaxing with friends. What could be nicer!
Find more ways to take your interiors style outdoors
Don’t let ‘June drop’ faze you
It can be alarming when some tiny apples or other fruits drop from your trees in early summer after the lovely spring blossom.
This is commonly called the ‘June drop’ and it’s a natural shedding of small fruits which leads to a bigger crop, especially where apples are concerned. This is because apples are large fruits and some trees can’t support the amount of fruit carried on each branch. It’s a tree’s natural defence mechanism as too large a crop will strain the tree’s resources. In fact, it’s said that only one bloom in 20 is needed for a good crop on a fully blossoming apple tree.
It can be alarming when some tiny apples or other fruits drop from your trees in early summer after the lovely spring blossom.
This is commonly called the ‘June drop’ and it’s a natural shedding of small fruits which leads to a bigger crop, especially where apples are concerned. This is because apples are large fruits and some trees can’t support the amount of fruit carried on each branch. It’s a tree’s natural defence mechanism as too large a crop will strain the tree’s resources. In fact, it’s said that only one bloom in 20 is needed for a good crop on a fully blossoming apple tree.
Enjoy your peonies
Peonies must be one of the prettiest large, blowsy flowers to bloom in the borders and have as cut flowers at home – and if you have them in your garden, they’ll be in flower around now.
There are two main varieties of peony: the tree (Paeonia suffruticosa) and the herbaceous (Paeonia lactiflora). The herbaceous peony will die back to ground level in the autumn each year, and the tree variety loses its leaves in winter while the woody stems remain.
A lot of people worry that peonies will be hard to grow, but as long as you plant them correctly, they will continue to flower for 50 years or more. For herbaceous varieties, choose a sunny spot in fertile soil with good drainage (the crown will rot if it’s too wet). Plant them so the highest bud is two inches below soil level. Don’t plant peonies too deeply as this can prevent flowering. Water well and you should have lovely big blooms after the first couple of years.
Peonies must be one of the prettiest large, blowsy flowers to bloom in the borders and have as cut flowers at home – and if you have them in your garden, they’ll be in flower around now.
There are two main varieties of peony: the tree (Paeonia suffruticosa) and the herbaceous (Paeonia lactiflora). The herbaceous peony will die back to ground level in the autumn each year, and the tree variety loses its leaves in winter while the woody stems remain.
A lot of people worry that peonies will be hard to grow, but as long as you plant them correctly, they will continue to flower for 50 years or more. For herbaceous varieties, choose a sunny spot in fertile soil with good drainage (the crown will rot if it’s too wet). Plant them so the highest bud is two inches below soil level. Don’t plant peonies too deeply as this can prevent flowering. Water well and you should have lovely big blooms after the first couple of years.
Nurture soft fruits
Strawberries should be producing lots of runners now, which you can remove or peg down into the soil with wire hooks until they root and grow new plants.
It’s a good idea to give your strawberry plants a high potash liquid feed every seven to 14 days, and, as the young fruits develop, put some straw underneath to prevent them rotting when they come into contact with wet soil. You may also want to net them to keep the birds away.
Often people say to me that their strawberries don’t taste as good as they used to, or are not as big as they once were, and this is because the plants are past their best. To get good fruit, you really need to replace the plants every three years.
Other fruits in the garden need to be kept well watered and helped along with a good organic mulch, which will retain moisture at the roots and reduce the growth of weeds. Watch out for grey mould and remove any rotten fruits to stop the spread to other plants or fruits.
TELL US…
What are you doing in your garden this month? Let us know, or share a photo, in the Comments below.
Strawberries should be producing lots of runners now, which you can remove or peg down into the soil with wire hooks until they root and grow new plants.
It’s a good idea to give your strawberry plants a high potash liquid feed every seven to 14 days, and, as the young fruits develop, put some straw underneath to prevent them rotting when they come into contact with wet soil. You may also want to net them to keep the birds away.
Often people say to me that their strawberries don’t taste as good as they used to, or are not as big as they once were, and this is because the plants are past their best. To get good fruit, you really need to replace the plants every three years.
Other fruits in the garden need to be kept well watered and helped along with a good organic mulch, which will retain moisture at the roots and reduce the growth of weeds. Watch out for grey mould and remove any rotten fruits to stop the spread to other plants or fruits.
TELL US…
What are you doing in your garden this month? Let us know, or share a photo, in the Comments below.
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Lathyrus odoratus (annual sweet pea) is one of the most popular summer cut flowers, and its delicate scent is intoxicating.
Now is the time to pinch out the side shoots and remove tendrils when the plants are around four inches high. This will give you longer stems so you can cut them and bring them into the home for a gorgeous summer display.
Sweet peas come in a range of colours, from deep magentas to very dark purples, and are a must, even if you only have a tiny terrace. They are easily grown from seed, or from plug plants from the garden centre. Just give them good organic matter worked into the soil and a support to climb up, such as an obelisk or wigwam. And remember to feed them weekly with a liquid rich potash solution.