The Star: June 04, 2020

The Star Thursday June 4 2020
22
GARDENING
NOW IT’S officially winter, don’t
abandon those lovely gardens that
enjoyed your attention during
lockdown.
Keep reaping the benefits of
your hard work through a few
monthly tasks.
This month’s jobs include pruning
of pip, stone fruit and roses,
harvesting of winter vegetables
and planting new strawberry
plants, shrubs and trees, as well
as general maintenance in the
garden.
Vegetable patch
Continue planting seedlings
of vegetables that you want to
harvest in late winter/early spring.
Seeds of broad beans, onions,
peas, radish and spinach can still
be sown. Prepare the soil thoroughly
with the addition of fresh
compost before planting.
June is the month for dividing
old rhubarb plants and this
should be done every three to
four years. Plant new divisions
600mm apart. Rhubarb thrives
in a ‘rich’ soil ie fresh compost
enriched with blood and bone.
Winter flowering annuals
Winter flowering annuals
planted in autumn should be in in
full flower. They include alyssum,
calendulas, aurelia, nemesias,
pansies, poppies, primulas, snapdragons,
stock and sweet peas.
Dead head finished flowers to
encourage continuous blooming.
Pruning fruit trees
June is the main month for
pruning existing fruit trees and
purchasing new ones. Garden
centres have the most comprehensive
selection of new season
fruit trees now. When pruning
young pip and stone fruit trees,
aim to create a strong structure
that will support the weight of
fruiting wood in future years.
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Don’t let that lockdown work disappear
TASKS:
Mass
displays
of winter
annuals
will
brighten
up your
deck. Plant
rhubarb
this month.
With older, mature fruit trees,
remove inward growing branches,
reduce the height of trees (for
harvesting and maintenance) and
remove any overgrown branches.
Where there are signs of damage
or disease, remove these
branches.
Pruning berry fruit
All these berry fruit (raspberries,
boysenberries, loganberries,
gooseberries) are very vigorous
growers requiring the removal of
all old growth and some of the
same seasons canes where they
are not required. Tie new canes to
the existing wires or framework.
Be careful to remove any diseased
plant material.
Planting strawberries
It’s the last month for planting
strawberries. Space new plants
120-200mm apart into mounded
soil 200mm above the existing
soil level. This ensures adequate
drainage and most importantly,
enhances the early warming of
the soil in spring.
Rose pruning commences
Apart from the odd late flowering
rose such as iceberg, most roses
have now shed their leaves and
can be pruned. Remove all dead
or diseased wood, remember
most rose bushes, even though
quite healthy, will have some dead
wood.
Prune to outward facing buds
and remove any wood that is
thinner than pencil thickness. If
some plants have a lot of dead/
diseased wood, it is advisable
to remove the specimens and
replace with new rose bushes.
With climbing roses, train the
main leaders (growing up from
ground) on a horizontal axis as
this encourages the production
of flowers. With all roses, a spray
with copper compound after
the completion of pruning helps
minimise reinfection of fungal
disease in spring.
Ornamental trees and
shrubs
Garden centres have the best
range of plants in June and July
so an excellent time to buy.
Always be fussy when selecting
new plants. Ensure they are new,
healthy, and not root-bound, and
are the right plant for the position
you are going to plant them
in. Try to avoid overcrowding in
your garden as trees and shrubs
can often grow a lot bigger than
what is written on the label.
Container gardens
Especially useful over the
winter months for growing salad
vegetables and herbs close to the
kitchen. Mass displays of winter
annuals in containers can brighten
up winter decks and balconies.
Always plant into fresh container
mix that has sufficient nutrients
for healthy, vigorous growth.
Are you ready to grow?
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