June in the Garden

What are we doing in the garden in June?

Well still sowing seed, that’s what we’re doing. Using up the leftovers time for the end of the season, and sowing biennials for next year.

If you’re sowing trays of foxglove, sweet rocket, sweet William, and other seeds, then do think of putting them to germinate in the shade, as this fierce sunlight will put them off germinating at all. Use a good peat-free compost and water from underneath so that the compost won’t dry out.

We sow our biennials around the fifteenth of June so that we’ll have good sized plants to put out into the ground to overwinter and flower in the spring next year.

You may find the lack of rain is leaving your borders looking really parched – and even well established shrubs might be looking a bit sad. I’m a great fan of giving a shrub a good water, then mulching over the wet earth immediately after the watering. The mulch will prevent all that precious water from immediately evaporating and the shrub will thank you kindly for it by looking fab all summer long. Equally, any late summer bulbs you’ve planted will love a water.

We are planting out our dahlias early in June. They too will love a really good water when you plant them, and then a little mulch to stop the water evaporating.

Good luck and happy gardening!