There's still time to give your garden a boost before July arrives, but you'll need to act this weekend. Whether it's getting a few final plants in the ground, sowing flowers for late-summer colour or tackling a couple of quick maintenance jobs, these are the tasks worth prioritising before June is over.
1. Deadhead fading flowers
It might feel like a chore, but deadheading now will keep many of your favourite summer flowers blooming for weeks to come. Snip off spent blooms on roses, cosmos, tender geraniums, knautias and sweet peas before they set seed, encouraging the plants to produce more flowers instead.
2. Divide overcrowded spring bulbs
Now is the perfect time to divide overcrowded clumps of spring bulbs such as snowdrops and bluebells – their foliage turns yellow and dies back. Lift the bulbs, separate them into smaller groups and replant them with a little more space – they'll reward you with a much better display next spring.
3. Cut back early-flowering perennials
Don't be afraid to give early-flowering perennials such as hardy geraniums and alchemilla a hard cut back before June is over. They'll quickly produce fresh new growth, look tidier and, in some cases, even reward you with a second flush of flowers later in the season.
4. Take semi-ripe cuttings
Before June is over, take semi-ripe cuttings from plants such as lavender, box, passion flower and heather. Choose a non-flowering shoot from this year’s growth, trim it to around 10cm, remove the lower leaves and place the cut end in cutting compost. Keep it moist and cover the pot with a plastic bag to help create the warm, humid conditions cuttings need to root.
5. Plant runner beans and French beans
There's still time to sow runner beans and French beans before July arrives. Sow them in rows or around a wigwam of bamboo canes for support, and water regularly during dry spells, as beans thrive in consistently moist soil. If you're growing fruit, now is also a good time to protect ripening crops by covering fruit trees, gooseberry bushes and currants with netting.
6. Sow pumpkins and squash
If you want homegrown pumpkins ready in time for Halloween, don't leave it any longer. Sow pumpkin and squash seeds before June is over to give them enough time to mature, and plant out any late seed potatoes too – there's no need to chit them at this stage of the season.
7. Plant out tender vegetables
Now that the risk of frost has passed, it's the perfect time to plant out tender vegetables such as courgettes, squash, tomatoes and sweetcorn. Support tomatoes with a sturdy cane and keep them well watered, especially during hot spells, as consistent watering is key to healthy growth and a good crop. If temperatures soar, young plants may need watering twice a day.
8. Harvest strawberries and early potatoes
Late June is when homegrown strawberries really come into their own, so pick ripe fruit regularly and place straw beneath the plants to keep berries clean and off the soil. If your potato plants have finished flowering, you can also start lifting the tubers as you need them rather than harvesting the whole crop at once.
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