June 5th

June is a glorious month in the garden. Many perennials are at their peak. And the annuals are beginning to fill in and start flowering. The peonies are finishing their show as the roses come into full bloom. Most perennials will benefit from regular deadheading to extend their bloom period. Peony flowers should be cut back to the first full set of leaves after they have faded.

Roses should be deadheaded weekly to encourage more flowers and shape the plant. When cutting off a faded rose, make a clean cut at a 45º angle and ¼" just above a leaf that has five leaflets. Make sure this leaf is growing outward. The new bud that grows from this point will grow out, opening up the center of the bush. Keeping the center of rose bushes open helps reduce the occurrence of leaf diseases. After the roses finish their first flush of bloom, they will benefit from fertilizing. Remove fallen foliage whenever possible and begin routine spraying if you haven't already, especially if there is any sign of disease.

Japanese beetles, a common pest on roses as well as on raspberry plants and cherry trees, are best treated in the grub stage. Adult beetles are more difficult to treat. Applying grub control to the lawn is the best way to go after a Japanese beetle population. Japanese beetle traps should not be used as they attract more beetles to your roses.

Chrysanthemums and fall-blooming asters should be pinched back to encourage bushiness. Cutting off a couple of inches is usually sufficient. This should be done once or twice before the beginning of July.

In the first half of this month finish planting out the tomato, pepper and eggplant seedlings. Corn, beans, pumpkins, squash and cucumbers can also be planted. Bush beans can be planted every two weeks until late July. After the seedlings emerge it is important to thin the plants according to the suggested spacing on the back of the seed packet. Over-crowded plants will be weak and unproductive.

Make sure to stake or cage the tomatoes, peppers and eggplant before they get too big. Take some time to train the tomato plants. Tomatoes can be trained to one or two main stems. To do this you need to pinch out the suckers that form above each leaf. Remove them up until the first flower cluster appears. Pinching out the suckers will remove the excess leaf growth opening up the plant to good air circulation. As the first flowers appear and the fruits begin to form, side-dress the plants with a little fertilizer or a thin layer of compost.

After the rhododendrons and azaleas finish blooming they can be pruned. Break off the old flower heads of the rhododendron carefully. It is easy to damage the emerging new branches just underneath. Rhododendrons and azaleas can both be fertilized after they finish blooming. Use a formula for acid-loving plants.

Treating plants for pests is usually most successful when the pest is caught in the early stages of growth. Get in the habit of routinely inspecting your trees, shrubs and flowers. Sprays should only be used when needed for a specific pest and not by the calendar. Many insects can be successfully removed by hand or with a blast from the hose. Some pests to watch for this month are aphids feeding on new succulent growth, caterpillars eating holes in leaves and small bagworms on evergreens.

Annuals planted now will take off quickly in the warm soil. Planting annual flowers before they flower is often recommended. But most retailers sell plants already blooming. To give the annuals a good start, some gardeners recommend removing the flowers at planting time. This allows the plant to put its energy into establishing new roots and foliage. New flowers will form quickly, but on a healthier plant.

Many of the annuals that grow best in the warm weather are arriving in garden centers now. Basil, impatiens, vinca, lisianthus, torenia and nicotiana all grow best in the warmer weather. And many new selections originally from the tropical climates are now being grown as annuals. Look for mandevilla vines, pentas and cuphea- also known as Hawaiian heather. All of them grow well in the garden or in containers, thriving in the heat.

Beth Nardone, botanist, is a resident of Hillsborough and is the Nursery Manager at the Belle Mead Farmer's Coop. Questions and comments can be sent to bethtanical@hotmail.com