June 21, 2006

Lavender’s Blue….

Filed under: General Posts, How to: Plant Care, Month 06: June — Mala @ 1:01 pm

Just as many early to mid summer plants start to look a bit tired, the lavender bushes send up their beautiful blue spires with their unmistakable old-fashioned fragrance to lift the whole garden out of the doldrums. What a treat this plant is, easy care and totally reliable, it is also extremely drought tolerant which seems to be what everyone is talking about these days.

Lavender is one of the mediterranean herbs that thrives in almost any soil except wet sticky clay. It needs good drainage and as much sun as it can get, but will be ok in a slightly shady spot. The leaves have a blue-green tint to them, some with a silvery sheen due to the tiny hairs on them which help reflect the sun. It is a sub-shrub, the leaves remain on the bush all year round so it makes an excellent informal hedge. It can be clipped right after flowering to tidy it up, and this will reward you with a second flush of flowers towards September or October.

The flowers are generally shades of lilac to deep purple, with some pinks and a lovely white. Especially decorative are the French or Spanish lavenders with their elongated top petals which look like tiny butterflies hovering over the plant. This works very well as a specimen plant - try it in one of those wonderful big terracotta pots for a choice garden feature.

 

 

Lavender grows readily from seed and will be in flower next summer if you sow them now. eSeeds.com is featuring several selected varieties of lavender at 50% off until the end of June.

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June 20, 2000

Increase your vegetable production with Succession Planting

Filed under: General Posts, How to: Garden Maintenance, How to: Plant Care, Month 06: June — Mala @ 7:06 pm

June In-Depth How-To:
Increase your vegetable production with Succession Planting

Many beginner gardeners plant their crops in the spring, harvest the vegetables, then clean up the garden and wait till next year to start all over again. It is very easy to get more enjoyment, not to mention more production out of your garden. Try succession planting for a constant supply of fresh produce all summer (and into autumn) long. No matter where you live, you can harvest at least two crops from the same area of the garden during the growing season.

Divide the crops you will be growing into two different categories : cool weather and warm weather crops. Crops that do well in cool weather include: beets, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, celery, kohlrabi, lettuce, parsnips, peas, radish, spinach, mustard greens, kale, turnips and swiss chard. Plant these varieties as early in the growing season as possible for your area of the country. After you have harvested these varieties from the garden, follow up by planting your warm weather vegetables. 

Warm weather vegetables include: beans, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, melons, okra, peppers, pumpkins, squash, tomatoes and watermelons. In a few areas of the country, a third planting of the cool weather crops can be planted again in the fall. Below are some examples of succession planting.

 

 

In many areas of the southern US, the growing season can be over 230 days.

Start by planting lettuce, spinach or other cool weather crops that can be harvested in 60 to 75 days. Follow that with a planting of beans or cucumbers (these also mature in about 60 to 75 days). This will still leave you with about 70 days for a late planting of root crops, cole crops or greens. Or as a second crop, you can plant corn, tomatoes, melons etc. and still have these mature by the end of the season.

In the northern areas of the country, you also can get two crops out of the same section of the garden. With as little as 150 days in the season, you can plant an early maturing lettuce or radish and follow with a crop of beans. In northern states with a longer growing season, tomatoes, melons, corn, etc. can all be planted after you have harvested the earlier crops of lettuce, spinach and cole crops.

Just remember, in order to plan succession planting, you have to know how many days each variety takes to mature and how long your growing season is. Also, do not plant members of the same family in succession, as this could put a strain on your soil’s resources. More on this aspect of vegetable gardening, known as ‘Crop Rotation’ in a future issue of the Journal.

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June Garden Action Items

Filed under: How to: Garden Maintenance, How to: Plant Care, Month 06: June — Mala @ 6:47 pm

It’s official - summer is here, although the rainy and cold weather that we’ve been having so far in Vancouver (and also in England if Chelsea coverage is anything to go by) wouldn’t let on to that fact…still, there is lots to do in the garden now, so out you go!

  1. Start to sow quick maturing vegetable seeds such as lettuce and radish on a regular two-week basis for the next couple of months. This will ensure a steady supply of fresh produce that is ready on a staggered time frame, and doesn’t mature all at the same time. Remember that these quick crops are a great starter plant for children, as their speedy germination and growth can be easily monitored and appreciated before they lose interest.
  2. Make sure that watering of newly emerging seedlings and freshly planted out flowers and vegetables is done very regularly! Don’t let them dry out too much at this delicate stage as they will not have the resources to recover, as will more established plants.
  3. Keep a close and vigilant eye out for garden pests. A small infection caught now will be much easier to control than a rampant infestation in a few weeks time. Aphids, blackfly, greenfly, slugs, etc can multiply at an alarming rate at this time of year. Try hand picking them, squashing them between your fingers (wear gloves if you are squeamish!). Some sources suggest a strong spray with a water jet to dislodge them - I don’t like this method personally as I’m sure they’ll be back within minutes? A mild soap solution seems a much better bet. Whichever method you choose, the trick is to catch the bad bugs early and regularly.
  4. By now almost all danger of severe frost has passed in even the coldest areas, and bedding plants can be safely put outside into the garden. Make sure they have been slowly acclimatised, though, or the sudden shock of moving them from a warm, sheltered indoor or greenhouse location straight outside can set them back quite a lot.
  5. It’s time to start the regular schedule of mowing the lawn, and if you haven’t done so already, the blades can now be lowered to their final desired position. If you cut regularly enough so that only a tiny bit is taken off each time, you won’t have to worry about the clippings, just let them fall back down. If you wait until you are removing an inch or two, it is often tidier to collect the clippings, either at the same time with the bag attached or raking up afterwards. Remember that these clippings are great for the compost heap, or used as a mulch (after they have been laid out to turn brown).
  6. All manner of vegetable crops can be sown outside throughout this month and will mature in time to produce a healthy harvest. Try beans, carrots, squash, peas, corn, lettuce, spinach and beets for a good assortment of fresh produce, guaranteed to taste better than anything you get from the supermarkets!
  7. With rows of vegetables planted earlier this year, it is now time to thin them to the correct spacing. This depends on the crop grown, and will be indicated on the seed packet. Firm the soil back around the row and water gently to settle the soil. A row of plants that is too close together will never reach its full potential, and the final produce load will be smaller than if you are brave and thin out now. This is a difficult job for some people (I definitely fall into this category!!) but remember that you can almost always use these little seedlings for fresh and trendy ‘baby vegetables’. Especially delicious are tiny carrots, beets and leeks which can be eaten whole, leaves and all in fresh salads or braised/grilled lightly in a pan.
  8. A little fertiliser sprinkled around rapidly growing shrubs and perennials will help them flower to their best. Scratch it in gently around the plants, not directly up against the stem but in a wide circle around the base. Water in if rain isn’t expected shortly.
  9. Now is a good time to divide those spring flowering perennials such as hellebores, primulas and pulmonarias. After the flowers have faded, dig up any old, established clumps and gently divide them into smaller pieces, each with its own section of leaves and roots. Replant these sections where desired or share them with friends.
  10. Early this month, cut back spring-flowering shrubs such as forsythia. This will keep the bush in shape as it tends to get a bit loose and straggly otherwise, as well as quickly outgrowing it’s allotted space! Cutting back at this time of year rather than in late autumn will ensure a good crop of flowers next spring as the plant has time to grow the shoots which will bear blossoms next season.
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