June 2009 Gardening Checklist

Allow foliage of spring-flowering bulbs to ripen
and yellow or brown before cutting back.
Leaves make the food reserves stored in the bulbs
that bring next year's flowers.

© Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp

• Houseplants will need more water and fertilizer during the summer growing period. Pay special attention to houseplants moved outdoors, making sure they do not dry out or get sunburned.
  
• Prune spring-flowering shrubs, such as forsythia, lilac and weigela if needed, within four weeks of when blooms fade.
  
• Keep grass mowed regularly, maintaining height about 1/2-inch higher than usual to protect crown or base of plant from heat stress.
  
• Don't remove clippings from the lawn unless grass is excessively tall. Clippings return nutrients to the soil and do not contribute to thatch buildup.
  
• Supplement water as needed. Most plants need an inch of water every week or 10 days. Newly planted shrubs and trees may require more.
  
• Remove faded blooms from peony, iris, delphiniums and other perennials.
• Apply Preen Mulch Plus Natural Hardwood, Russet Red, Midnight Black or Cocoa Brown to garden beds to prevent at least 100 weeds, providing better, more effective controls for a longer period than any other mulch on the market. Preen Mulch Plus is made of premium hardwoods enhanced with herbicide to prevent broadleaf and grassy weeds from germinating for six months.
  
• Divide or transplant spring-flowering bulbs after they've finished blooming. Mark empty spaces in the landscape to show where to plant spring-flowering bulbs next fall.
  
• Harvest spring plantings of broccoli, lettuce, cabbage and peas.
  
• Plan for your Halloween pumpkin. The seed packet will tell you the number of days to harvest. Count backward to find the proper planting date.
  
• Tie leaves up over the developing heads to blanch (exclude from light) cauliflower when heads are 2 inches in diameter.
  
• Remove cold-season plants, such as radish, spinach and lettuce, as they bolt or form seed stalks. Replace with successive plantings of beans or corn or warm-season crops, such as tomatoes, peppers and squash.
  
• Apply Preen Vegetable Garden Weed Preventer when transplants or seedlings reach 3 inches tall.
  
• Discontinue harvest of asparagus and rhubarb in mid-June to allow foliage to develop and store food reserves for next year. Apply an all-purpose fertilizer according to label directions. Water when dry.