What to do in the garden in June

In the garden

June marks the start of the heat. Avoid planting now except for very tough plants, and if you do, water them every day for the first few weeks. Work in the garden first thing in the morning or as the evening cools.

Pots dry out faster than the ground. Group them in partial shade and stand them on saucers of wet gravel.

Lawn

Raise the cutting height to 6-8 cm on cool-season lawns and don’t mow in the heat of the day. Bermuda grass and other warm-season grasses are now at their peak growth and can take a lower cut.

Watering

Water between 6 and 9 in the morning. Drip irrigation may need to run every day for young plants and every two or three days for established shrubs. Check often for leaks: in the heat, any fault shows up quickly.

Pruning

• Deadhead roses and perennials so they keep flowering.
• Give hedges a light trim, never in strong sun.
• Don’t prune palms: the red palm weevil is active and is drawn to fresh cuts.

Vegetables and fruit trees

Pick courgettes, green beans and the first tomatoes often. Keep up the straw mulch to hold in moisture. On citrus, check the undersides of the leaves for scale insects and whitefly. Water the almond trees: the nuts are filling out.

Plants of the month

• Succulents for sunny terraces.
• Gaura, lantana and verbena, which cope with full sun.
• Summer houseplants for cool spots in the house.

Hedra’s tip

In June the pine processionary moths start to fly. A pheromone trap hung in the pine catches the males and reduces this year’s egg-laying. Put it up now and leave it until September. We have the traps at the garden centre and can show you how to hang them.