The beginning of the heat has officially arrived. With summer’s onslaught, we can usually expect temperatures to soar into the 90s and 100s. Gardeners hardly want to go out into the garden at all, but we have things to do. This to-do list will help keep your garden in check and give you as much time out of the sun as possible.
In the Vegetable Garden
- Remember to keep turning your compost pile. Keep adding weeds and kitchen scraps
- Now is a good time to plan and build cold frames so they will be ready for fall and winter https://youtu.be/b75RoDmE9qY
- If you have a greenhouse or growing area in the house, start seeding fall broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, and Brussel’s sprouts now
- Clean up old beds of cole crops before bolting, unless you are saving them for seed
- Harvest garlic as the leaves begin to fall over and yellow – cure them by laying the whole plant out in on a rack or bench, outside but covered, for 1-2 weeks until the tops are completely dried
In the Landscape
- Prune lavender back by 1/3 to 1/2
- Cut back perennial salvia to lowest set of leaves
- Cut back catmint by 1/2
- Handpick Japanese beetles at 7 in the evening, or early in the morning, drop them into a bucket of soapy water http://www.grimmsgardens.com/watch-japanese-beetles/
In the Orchard
- Prune watersprouts from peach trees now
- Spray fruit trees if necessary for Japanese beetles with an insecticide
Trees
- Prune birch, maple, and black walnut now
All in all, not a lot of things to do in the garden right now, so sit back and relax with a glass of ice tea or lemonade and watch the bees buzzing on the flowers.
Happy planting!
