June in the Garden

BY LISA GRUGIN

THE FIRST HALF of the year has certainly been interesting in the landscape. Some of your plants are looking great, some are not. I finally gave in and removed a boxwood and two enormous loropetalums in my yard, but everything else seems to be recovering. Hopefully your yard is getting back to normal as well!

So, what is there to do in your yard in June? A lot! But let’s talk first about one of my passions: pollinator plants. Our focus on clearing land and establishing lawns over the past few decades has not done any favors for our environment, and there is a high cost to pay. More than 30% of the food we eat every day relies on or benefits from pollinators, including the most nutritious foods. In addition, coffee and chocolate depend on them, so without our pollinators, we would be hungry, malnourished, and cranky!

Who are our pollinators? Primarily bees, but not just the ones you know about. While honeybees and bumble bees are the best known, there are more than 4,000 bee species native to North America. The vast majority are solitary bees where the female makes her nest alone. Most are not aggressive and don’t sting. Honeybees are the primary workers, responsible for 80% of flowering plants. Bumble bees are also crucial because they pollinate both flowers and agricultural crops. Unfortunately, honeybees and bumble bees are facing extinction risk.

Bees aren’t the only pollinators, however. Butterflies, moths, beetles, birds, bats, and even flies can serve as secondary pollinators. I could write this entire article about the importance of caring for them, but I don’t have room. Instead, let’s focus on what you can do to help.

The number one thing is to plant pollinator friendly flowers. Native sun perennials are your best bet, but you also need overlapping and sequential blooms. More is better, but even a small bed can attract a host of pollinators!

The second thing for you to do is provide a nest site. Leave patches of bare earth, brush piles, and nesting blocks. Plant host plants such as butterfly weed for eggs and caterpillars, and provide a bowl of wet sand or a shallow basin with pebbles as a water source.

Lastly, protect them from chemicals. Use as few as possible, and use them wisely. Do you really need to spray a bug that has a short life cycle? Please educate yourself about good bugs and bad bugs, and always use the least toxic product first.

Now let’s go over what you should do this month.

_ Do frequent walk-arounds. Plants are stressed and therefore more vulnerable to disease and insects. If you catch problems when they are just beginning, you have a better chance of getting them under control. Keep in mind that the best treatment for most cold issues is time.

_ The cool, wet weather we have had created a good breeding ground for fungus, so watch for it during your walk-around and begin treating at the first sign. Neem is a good starting point chemical, but some plants may require something stronger.

_ You can prune the winter damage from shrubs now if you haven’t already done so. You can also cut back spent bulbs, the stalks of spring bloomers (iris, peonies, etc.), and annuals that are getting leggy. If you want to reduce the size of your spring blooming trees and shrubs, prune soon after they stop blooming so they have not set bud yet.

_ Maintain your container plants. Most will need to be deadheaded, cut back, cleaned up (don’t let the spent blooms settle down into the container), and fertilized weekly.

_ How are your vegetables? Many are off to a slow start, and that is because the soil has not warmed up enough. Be vigilant in watching for trouble in the form of insects and disease, and treat before it gets out of hand. Splashing water is a quick way to spread disease, so always use soaker hoses or water at the base of the plant. Mulch will help. Call us if you have problems.

_ Finally, don’t panic if you haven’t planted yet. There is still time!

We are still getting regular deliveries, although the high demand for plants this season has made it harder to keep up. Stop by or give us a call if you have questions. Let us help you have a beautiful yard!

Meadow View Greenhouses & Garden Center

9885 Highway 11E, Lenoir City, TN 37772 865.986.7229

MeadowViewGreenhouse.com