Monday, May 31, 2021

June 2021 Edible Garden Planner

Potted edibles and flowers in the June garden
Monday, May 31, 2021

June is a productive time in the garden.  Cool season crops are peaking while summer vegetable crops are just starting to produce with herbs in full swing.  Everything is a lush green at the beginning of the month.  As your fruit producing veggies flower, they will need a boost of fertilizer.  As the rain slows down, consistent ground moisture is key.

What’s growing in the garden right now
Most of the lettuce and spinach I planted in March as well as the chard that overwintered have bolted.  The lettuce seeds started in April are starting to bolt.  The lettuce seed I started in May are of a harvestable size now.  I will resow heat tolerant lettuce seeds about every 3 weeks for the summer lettuce harvesting starting this week.  I'll put them in pots so I can keep them in a cool spot or with a shade cover as lettuce doesn't like it hot!  Growing fabulous lettuce and greens

Don't worry about insect damage to the leaves on the cabbage and broccoli as long as the heads are forming nicely.  A little insect damage will not affect the quality of the head produced.  If you are getting over run with worms, you can use an organic Bt spray that only affects worms and not bees or other pollinating insects.  Natural, organic pest strategies and how to make your own bug sprays   Broccoli and cauliflower growing tips  

I had overwintered sprouting broccoli in the garden.  The sprouting broccoli has bolted and seed pods are close to being able to use to resow.  They are great for salad greens during the summer months, but cabbage worms love them.  I will keep it under shade cloth when they sprout to keep the moths from laying eggs on them.  Sprouting broccoli- a year round fav  

I also grow New Zealand spinach and Red Malabar spinach as substitutes for conventional spinach.  Both have leaves that are thicker than spinach.  They love heat and stay sweet tasting all summer.  The New Zealand spinach is of a harvestable size.  It will be another couple of weeks for the Red Malabar spinach.  

Arugula, sorrels, chard, plantain greens and cultivated dandelions are all harvestable.  As it gets hotter, these greens become stronger.  Since they are perennials, they are the first up in the spring for fresh salads.  Harvest the new leaves in summer for the mildest taste.  You can cut them back, too, to get fresh new leaves.  It doesn't hurt them at all.

This year I am also growing kale, Chinese Hilton cabbage, Giant Red mustard, purple orach and multicolor Chinese amaranth to have a variety of greens for salads.  Dragon's Tail or Rat's Tail radish is fun to grow and the seed pods are tasty in salads.  I am growing Dragon's Tail radish this year in a pot.  I planted snow peas in pots in early May.  I used the type that the vines don't get too long.  The flowers and leaves are great in salads and stay sweet tasting into summer.  The Chinese cabbage is one that has long leaves.  I grew it last year and it did not become bitter so it is great for salads or wraps.

The cilantro, rosemary, sage, chives, savory, oregano, basil, lavender, tarragon, parsley and thyme are filling out nicely and flowering. The common chives are close to blooming with their beautiful lavender flowers.  The flowers are edible, too.  They are fun to use in salads or as a substitute for onions in cooking.  Very pretty to add in baked potatoes and grill.  We slice our potatoes, add some diced onion or chive flowers, butter, seasoning, wrap in foil and throw on the grill.  Yum.
Start a kitchen herb garden!

Another great thing about herbs is they are a good deterrent to deer.  Deer do not like strong smells so avoid fragrant herbs.  I plant them all around the garden to keep the pesky critters away.  We now live out in the country and deer will even bed down in the yard.  What has worked to keep them out of the garden is a combination of herbs throughout the garden, a pod deer deterrent, WD40 on socks, and allyssium around the perimeter of the garden bed.  
Flowering chives
Tomatoes and eggplant have started flowering so it won't be long before we will be able to eat fresh tomatoes!  I started most of the peppers later so they are not flowering.  They come on quickly, though, this time of year.  Tomatoes 101, everything you need to know to grow great tomatoes    Peppers are for every taste and garden

This year, I am treating the tomatoes, squash, beans and cucumbers with an organic fungicide.  We have hot humid summers here in the Midwest and fungus loves those conditions!  Keeping fungal growth down should greatly improve the plants' health and harvest.  I'll alternate a Copper fungicide with Serenade fungicide after each rain.  I always try to spray when it is cool so they plant does not get stressed.  

I am trying a few different beans this year along with a couple of my standbys.  I planted purple Blauhilde instead of Purple Podded beans because it is more disease resistant, Northeastern, green Romano, winged, and a Kentucky heirloom Greasy Grits pole green beans.  I prefer pole beans because you get so much from one plant and they produce over the entire summer.  I grow them on a trellis so they are easy to harvest.  The advantage of bush beans is that the harvest duration is short so you don't have to worry about picking fresh beans all summer.  Growing beans

I am growing a Kentucky heirloom lima bean, Christmas Speckles.  It is a pole type and has beautiful red and white beans.  They are grown the same as snap beans.  You just harvest after the seed pods are dry.  Because you are leaving the pods on much longer for dry beans, your harvest per plant will be much less so plant accordingly.

I am trying a Kentucky heirloom cucumber this year, too, White Wonder.  I started them indoors and transplanted them outside a couple of weeks ago.  You can also direct seed this time of year.  Seeds should be up in 7 days.  My vines are already flowering so it won't be long for fruits.  For cucumbers, keep an eye out for cucumber beetles and caterpillars.  Just pluck them off and throw into a can of soapy water.  How to grow cucumbers-in pots or in the garden

I have a few kinds of squash I grew indoors from seed.  They are all transplanted.  I am growing one type of summer squash, Bush Zucchini, and 2 winter type squashes, Jarradale a beautiful blue pumpkin type and Spaghetti squash.  Don't be afraid of not being able to use all your zucchini, there are great ways to preserve them.  I am still using the zucchini spaghetti noodles out of the freezer from last year and Spaghetti squash "noodles"  I never need to buy pasta.  Veggie noodles are low in carbs and high in nutrition.  What to do with all that zucchini?!   Everything you need to know to grow squash 

Overwintered carrots, onions,  and garlic are all flowering, including the Egyptian walking onions Egyptian walking onions.  I am harvesting the walking onion any time I need onions for cooking.  The green stalk is great as a fresh chive, too, for salads or potatoes.

I am still getting strawberries and raspberries.  Both seem to be pest free in our garden.  You just have to get to the strawberries before the birds do!  I am growing a couple different kinds of Alpine strawberries from seed, Regina and Mignonette.  I love Alpine strawberries because they produce small, sweet berries all summer long.  Back yard strawberries
Ripe Alpine strawberries
 My hubby also planted erect and semi trailing blackberries for us this year.  Not sure there will be berries on the new bushes since we just planted them a couple of weeks ago.  The wild blackberries have been blooming for a couple of weeks.  Won't be long before there will be ripe berries.

Last year I got a bare root Chicago fig tree.  I have it in a pot that I overwintered in my portable greenhouse.  I may get fruit from it this year.  Time will tell.  It can be kept in a pot or transplanted into the ground.  Growing “exotic” figs  There are other varieties you can grow if you are space constrained.  I am growing a kumquat, lemon, goji berry, and aronia all in pots.  Fruit for small spaces and pots

Now is the time to provide shade for your lettuce and sow bolt resistant varieties like Summer Crisp Magenta, Green Towers and Jericho Romaine, Simpson Elite leaf.  The Red Sails will typically stay sweet even after it has bolted.  You can move your lettuces if in pots to a shadier part of your patio or porch.  Shade cloths can be used for those in the garden.  You can also plant taller veggies on the south and west side of your lettuces so as they grow, they provide shade to the lettuces.  I move most of my greens around to the northeast, shady side of the house this time of the year to keep them sweet as long as possible.  This year I bought shade cloths to use over the frame of my mini greenhouses.  They do seem to be helping extend the harvest.  
I always have to have lots of flowers interspersed in the garden for color, fragrance and to attract beneficial insects.  In addition to the perennial jasmine, daylilies, hollyhocks, gardenia, gladiolus, mums, irises, bachelor button, and lilies, I am growing alyssum, Cardinal basil, zinnias, petunias, sunflowers, blue morning glory, Pride of Madeira and wildflowers.

Best time to harvest
The best time to harvest almost any vegetable is mornings or right after a rain; this is when they are the crunchiest, fullest and sweetest.  Harvest greens in the morning before you go to work and store in the frig for the day.  Just don’t store tomatoes in the frig; this ruins the flavor.

The best time to harvest aromatic herbs like rosemary, thyme and oregano is in the afternoon when the oils are most concentrated.  Harvest herbs like parsley, cilantro and dill in the cooler part of the day.

For more tips on preserving the extra, see Preservation garden

Watering & fertilizing tips
With the heat coming, it is time to start watering.  In general, garden plants like about 1" of water each week.  Pots require more.  Keep consistent moisture to your lettuces to keep taste sweet and your lettuce from bolting as long as possible.  When your lettuce does bolt, let it go to flower and seed.  The bees and beneficial insects enjoy the flowers and the seeds can easily be saved for fall and next spring planting or allowed to self sow.  

Fertilize all your fruit bearing veggies when the first flowers appear (right now we have flowers and small fruits on our peppers, eggplant and tomatoes).  Provide only compost tea or kelp the rest of the season.  Too much nitrogen will cause your plants to grow lush foliage with no fruits.  Nitrogen stimulates green growth so is great for greens but should be used in moderation for fruiting plants.  I like to add Azomite or kelp to each plant once a year.  Both have a variety of trace minerals that can really boost a plant's health and harvest.

For more on summer garden care, Summer garden tips
Summer greens and herbs
Can I still plant a garden in June-Yes!
There are many vegetables and herbs that you can still plant right now.   Any of the summer vegetables love these temperatures and sun.  As a matter of fact, this is the best time to plant cucumbers and zucchini to avoid the vine borer.  Even if you have planted zucchini and tomatoes already, late June is a good time to plant a second crop.  If your seeds don't come up within a week, it is likely that they were either bad or they rotted.  Seeds can rot when the ground is really wet and chilly.  It is still a great time to start seeds.  

A list of all veggies that can be planted in June:
Arugula
Broccoli raab  
Brussels sprouts  Growing Brussel sprouts
Bulbing fennel  Growing fennel
Lettuce (heat tolerant varieties)  Everything you need to know about growing lettuce
Mediterranean herbs (basil, thyme, sage, oregano, rosemary, chives)  Start a kitchen herb garden!
Parsnips
Salsify
Sweet potatoes  Growing sweet potatoes

Savory, thyme, lettuce, onions with day lilies in the background
Here are a couple of garden ideas

If you have a picky eater, try the kid’s pizza/spaghetti garden.  If they grow it, they want to eat it!
Tomatoes-any you can’t eat, you can easily freeze for winter pizzas, salsa, or sauce
Basil, oregano, chives, garlic for seasoning
Onions-you can grow Egyptian walking onions in a pot or ground and they are perennials to boot
Kale, arugula, broccoli and peas for spring and fall pizza toppings (also easy to freeze for later)
Green peppers, eggplant, zucchini for summer pizzas (maybe some hot peppers for the adults)
For those that are real adventuresome, you can get mushroom kits to grow mushrooms.

Or if you want a culinary garden, here is an Italian/Sicilian garden that you can grow in as little as a 6’ x 6’ space:
Herbs (1 each)-thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano, and flat leaf parsley
3 basil plants (for pesto and seasoning)
2 tomatoes-1 Roma type for sauces and 1 slicer type for salads
2 sweet pepper plants
1 zucchini
1 eggplant
8 red onions (you can substitute Egyptian walking onions)
8 garlic plants
Arugula, spinach and lettuce scatter sown

For other garden themes and ideas:
Small space French kitchen garden

It is great fun, a time saver, and nutritious to grow your own food in your yard or patio! 
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