June Tasks for Your Growing Space

With summer on the way, there is no shortage of tasks to consider and accomplish in our growing spaces. Below is a list of to-do's to consider for the month ahead. Many of these I have found myself working on already this week, and the rest are on the agenda for later this month!

HARVEST: Carrots, and other spring root vegetables like beets, radish, etc. Many of our spring sown roots are prime to pull this month! Maybe even your potatoes are ready, if you planted them in February or March.

HARVEST: Spring greens like kale, collard greens, spinach, arugula, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, bok choy, etc. are not expected to last much longer. As temperatures warm up, the caterpillar worms and army worms come out in full force. I only have a few kale plants remaining from my early spring planting.

HARVEST: Garlic! Oh y'all, I can't wait to harvest my garlic later this month. I planting my crop late last fall and am still waiting for my scapes to fully form. I'm hoping to harvest the scapes (flower heads) in the next week or so, and pull the garlic bulbs before the end of June.

HARVEST: Early summer fruits like cucumbers, tomatoes, and squash. If you planted these in April, chances are you have a few fruits ready to pull this month.

HARVEST: Blueberries and raspberries! My berry bushes are going NUTS right now. Handfuls of golden raspberries daily, that go straight down the hatch before making it to the kitchen. I'm harvesting bowlfuls of blueberries every few days, too.

PULL: Tired spring vegetables that show signs of pest damage, especially ones with aphids. This week and last I pulled lots of spring peas, lettuces, spinach, and kales.

PULL: Weeds! Shew. I spent 3 hours this week pulling weeds from EVERYWHERE. The rain makes all things grow. And we are thankful.

PRUNE: June is the month ripe for keeping up with tomato plants' health and vitality. At a minimum, trim bottom leaves of the plants that touch the soil. If you want to do a hands-on pruning lesson to increase your yields and maximize plant health, schedule a Consultation. I love talking about tomato pruning.

TRELLIS & STAKE: Make sure any vining crops or others that benefit from growing vertically (tomatoes, cucumbers, etc.) have the support they need to keep the air flowing around the leaves.

SOW: I always keep a stash of seeds on hand for June and July so I can fill the "gaps" in my growing space as they pop up, like where my kale is now that will soon be pulled or the many, many, spots soon to open up once I harvest my 100+ bulbs of garlic... hee hee. Crops that are great to sow at the start of summer? Okra, pumpkins, winter squash (like acorn, spaghetti, etc.), sweet potato slips, green beans, edamame, sunflowers, green onion, basils, these are on my list to pop in later this month.

FEED: Add a little plant food to the soil or top dress everything with a layer of compost this month. Your warm season crops are heavy feeders and keeping the soil supported will translate to more harvests for you!

WATER: Don't forget to water your sweet plants! Once temperatures are consistently over 85 degrees, you may be watering every day. Until then, every other day should work great. Water deeply, fully saturating the soil.

PLANT: Citrus always speaks to me this time of year. Consider adding a citrus tree or two to your growing space! Just keep in mind that most citrus trees need to come inside during the cooler months, or anytime when temperatures are below 55 degrees. Marshall (my partner) and I went to the mountains last Saturday and stopped at the Tractor Supply in Taylorsville on our way. I bought FOUR new citrus trees y'all -- blood orange, variegated pink lemon, red caviar finger lime, and a variegated minneola tangelo! Is there room in the greenhouse for all these?! Absolutely not. But this, is a problem for fall, not spring. Ha!

Enjoy all the moments June has to offer. Find time as often as you can to sit with your plants, feel the sun, smell the tomato dust, taste sweet harvests, see new growth, hear the bees buzz from flower to flower. It truly is a magical month!