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Gardening Jobs for June

Any bedding plants you find for sale can safely be planted outdoors in beds, boxes, or containers.

The pros recommend treating tulips as annuals with the exception of species tulips. Painful as it may be, yank those tulips up, compost them, and plan to plant the bed anew in the fall.

If you long for a hanging basket filled with blossoms, compare prices on different-size plants. It may be more economical to buy several small plants and combine them yourself rather than pay for one large plant. Starting this month, keep hanging plants such as fuchsias well watered and out of direct sun, or their leaves will burn.

Plants that bloom now include balloon flower; Canterbury bells; clematis; coreopsis; delphiniums; English, painted, and Shasta daisies; foxgloves; Oriental poppies; and sweet William.

If you're growing June-bearing strawberries, pinch off all the flowers that bloom the first spring after planting. If not allowed to bear fruit, they will spend their food reserves on developing healthy roots.

Encourage young fruit trees to develop strong limbs and a wider crotch angle by weighing down the branches with clothespins.

Thin fruit trees by leaving 1 fruit approximately every 6 to 12 inches along the branches or 1 fruit per cluster. The higher the leaf-to-fruit ratio, the sweeter the fruit. A standard apple tree should have about 40 leaves for each fruit. Dwarf apples, which usually produce a ration of 1 fruit to about 25 leaves, will yield better-quality fruit when thinned.

Stop cutting asparagus when the yield decreases and the spears diminish in size. Top-dress the bed with compost or well-rotted manure.

Stake tomatoes or build cages around them.

Plant beets and carrots for a late-fall crop.

As the days grow warmer, yank up lettuce that begins to bolt and toss it on your compost pile. Plant another crop of beans in its place.

Thin crowded plantings of lettuce, carrots, beets, and herbs. Give them a good watering when the job is finished to help the roots of remaining plants recover from any damage your pulling may have inflicted.

Religiously patrol your basil plantings and remove all the clusters of flower buds that form at the stem ends the minute you see them forming. This will encourage nice bushy plants and a continuing supply of leaves.

Place beer-filled plastic tubs or saucers in the garden, set level with the soil, to lure slugs to a drunken death. (Studies show they prefer imported beer.) Or place a few old boards in the garden and turn them over every morning to find slugs as they sleep. Dispose of them by dropping them into soapy water or crushing them with a brick.

Mulch around trees to create a safe zone where your mower won't go. Nicking a tree trunk can seriously damage even a well-established tree.

Mow your lawn according to the needs of the grass, not the calendar -- for example, every Saturday. Grasses thicken and provide better cover when regularly clipped at the proper height. Adjust your lawn mower blades to cut the grass at 2 or 3 inches rather than at 1 1/2 inches.

Prune rhododendrons after they flower. On young and old plants, snap off spent flower stalks by bending them over until they break away from their stems. Be careful not to damage growth buds at the base of each flower stalk.

Don't trim iris leaves into scallops or fan shapes after the flowers fade. Leaves carry on photosynthesis and develop nourishment for next year's growth. Cut off brown tips and remove the flowering stalk down to the rhizome. If you're dividing irises, cut the leaves back by about half just before you move them.

If you're growing plants outdoors in containers, don't use a soilless potting mix. Be sure it contains at least half soil. Or make your own blend for window boxes and patio containers by mixing one part compost, one part garden soil, and one part builder's sand.

When shopping at a nursery, don't buy a tree or shrub with a damaged root ball. Inspect it carefully to make sure it is uniform, not crushed, and a good size. For every inch of the trunk, the ball should be seven to eight inches in diameter.

Unless you're working your way through knee-high grass, don't remove those grass clippings from the lawn. Leave them where they fall to filter down to the soil, decompose, and recycle nutrients into the roots.

All vegetable crops, including warm-season plants, can go in the ground now.

Continue to sow carrots, beets, and beans to spread out the harvest.

Pull out any bolted lettuce, spinach, or radish plants.

Harvest early season fruits and vegetables.

Pull soil up against potato plants when they are 9 to 12 inches tall.

Sidedress asparagus and rhubarb with aged manure or fertilizer (10-10-10 formulation).

Protect ripening strawberries from birds.

Eliminate weeds when they are small and easy to pull. By keeping your plants well-watered and fertilized, they will quickly fill in spaces instead of weeds.

Thin your seedlings to their proper spacing so as to avoid over-crowding. Remove dead flowers from plants to encourage new growth.

Remember to water your plants. It is better to water your garden thoroughly once a week to ensure that a deep root system is established.

Deadhead fading blossoms from perennials and roses.

Prune older canes from climbing roses.

Fertilize roses after the flowers start to fade.

Give perennials a fertilizer boost (5-10-10 formula).

Divide and replant iris.

Finish pruning spring-flowering trees and shrubs by the end of the month.

Mow your lawn when grass is at a height of 2 to 3 inches to best keep weeds down.

Start seedlings of broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage now so they can be transplanted in the fall.

Thin overloaded fruit trees; thinning them will allow for larger and healthier fruit to grow.

Protect fruit trees from animals and pests.

June is the driest month. However, do NOT overwater. Water slowly, deeply (5 or 6 inches deep), and let the soil dry between watering.

Stick to your mowing schedule. Lawns will grow faster with the warmer weather, so try to mow every 5 to 6 days.

Apply a 3 to 4 inch layer of mulch around the roots of your plants. The mulch will help retain moisture during the dry summer months.

Finish seeding Bermuda and warm-season grasses by the end of June.

Native and imported heat-tolerant plants can be planted during summer months as long as they are watered regularly until fall.

Plant colorful summer annuals, such as cosmos, marigolds, salvia, or petunias.

Pinch back established mums, and plant mums now for fall bloom.

Cut back on fertilizing roses during the hot temperature. Water deeply. Hose off roses in early morning to increase humidity.

Remove faded or dead flowers from your plants to encourage new growth.

Remove any unwanted or vigorous branches from trees.

June is not a good planting month for most edibles. You can plant melons, sunflowers, and sweet potato transplants. Be sure to water your transplants both before and after you plant them.

Some common problems to look for in gardens are gray leaf spot, blossom end rot, spider mites, and lace bugs.