Here’s as we’re writing this on the June Summer Solstice, seems a good time to just share our report of June gardening tips, tasks, plantings and harvests. This update includes links to other article that address issues you may be having around this time of the year, and it may be that our checklist will help you in fleshing out yours.

We’d love to hear your June gardening tips and tasks, as well as what you’re planting and harvesting in this month.

June Gardening Tasks

• BIRD DEFLECTORS strung up around the patch of blueberries
• BUILT STORAGE areas for tools, supplies, and wood
• FERTILIZED –
  • with Milorganite organic fertilizer around Kiwi vines as fertilizer and deer repellent
  • made and applied compost tea and fertilized all plants
• MULCHED about half the wooded yard areas with free fresh free wood chip mulch
• ORGANIC PEST CONTROL – Sprayed kaolin clay (Surround WP) using the handy battery powered garden sprayer on:
  • beans,
  • cucumbers
  • eggplant
  • peppers
  • zucchini
• ORGANIZED surplus building materials
• PLANTED –
  • Eggplants – more (Black Beauty)
  • Marigolds
• PRUNED –
  • goji berries that were badly mildewed and treated for powdery mildew
  • Pruned tomatoes
• SLUGS – treated plants to get rid of garden slugs
• STAKING & TRELLISES –
  • Beans – strung jute twine to trellised teepee for beans
  • Cucumber
  • Squash
  • Tomatoes – tended the tomato staking
• WEEDING like crazy, which is so much easier after a big rain

Speaking of rain, you may enjoy this article on the Smell of Rain)

*NOTE: Kaolin clay (Surround WP) is recommended as an organic pest control treatment that fends off a broad spectrum of pests and diseases. Look for more reporting on this in the weeks to come.

Planted in June

Planted 3 New Ornamental Perennials

• Bee Balm, (spotted)
• Cardinal Flowers that blooms in fall
• Marigolds
• Stokesia, Stokes Aster, purple flowers

Vegetables Planted in June

Some of these are a second batch of plantings to expand production.

• Eggplants (planted more)
• Pepper (Yellow Monster)
• Tomatoes (Cherokee Purple and Brad’s Atomic Grape)

Planting Tall Perennial Flowers in Landscape Gardening

Spotted Bee Balm

June Harvest

• Bee Balm Flower – fresh flower heads (for herbal infusion / tea) and dried leaves for tea (See Article on bee balm uses)
• Beet Greens to add to salads
• Cucumber (Bush Pickle) – enjoying homemade refrigerator pickles
• Beans – (Purple TeePee and Romano Purpiat)(coming on strong now)
• Chard – (Bright Lights and Perpetual Spinach)
• Dandelion
• Dill weed
• Herbs – lots of herbs like:
  • lemon balm
  • rosemary
  • oregano

We’ve been enjoying homemade refrigerator pickles. You can see Easy Refrigerator Pickles Recipe here.

Bee Balm Lemon Water in an Infusion Pitcher

Rain, Rain, Welcome Here…

…but please don’t pelt the plants!

We received five inches of rain in the past week. Showers were so heavy they punched holes in our leafy greens!  A cold front came after the rains. Temps dropped to the mid 50’s. All is well and thriving and we’ve had incredibly beautiful days.

If you’re interested in a happy rendition of the old “Rain, Rain”, your can find a positive rendition of that old song in this garden poetry article. And here, where you may also enjoy this article on the smell of rain, called petrichor.

We commenced a number of outdoor projects. My son and I built a lean-to storage shed from scratch. We framed it, covered the roof with metal, and poured a concrete floor. Thankfully, ole Dad remembered his skills so he could pass them along, and in timely fashion, just before Father’s Day! 😉

Other projects included garden tool organizing and building a crib for our leftover and recycled lumber.

Admiring the Beauty

After the days of rain, our landscape is flourishing! Our trail cam caught this shot of the lovely ruby throated hummingbird heading straight for the scarlet bee balm

That’s our past couple weeks. Hope you all have enjoyed your gardening as well. Please, send us your garden photos, comments, tips, and share our page with your friends.

We’re still early in the season and have weeks to go! Keep growing and enjoying!