June Home Gardening Tips
June is a great time in Maryland to enjoy your yard and plants. Improving your gardens every year with plants and products from Potomac Garden Center will bring great rewards in beauty and satisfaction that you are the successful caretaker of your natural environment.
Lawns: Hot, summerlike days are already here. Maintain proper mowing height to keep it healthy. Don’t remove more than 1/3 of the grass blade each mowing and keep your mower blades sharp – dull mower blades can lead to disease. White tips on your cut grass are an indication that it’s time to sharpen your mower blades. 3″ is a good height for most grasses including zoysia and Bermuda. Skip fertilizing fescue or bluegrass turf June through August.
Trees: You can continue to plant container and burlapped/balled trees from Potomac Garden Center all summer (check our specials often for great value) - just make sure they are watered during dry periods. After planting, soak the root ball every few days until the roots become established. Avoid compacted or poorly drained soil or planting too deep – keep mulch away from the trunk. Our staff can help you in proper selection of a beautiful tree that works well in your type of soil and property space.
Damaging Insects: Insects are busy in June so keep an eye out for infestations on your plants before they cause too much damage. Bring a specimen or photo into Potomac Garden Center and we will assist you with the proper insecticide or fungicide selection to get your landscape or garden back to optimum health.
Ornamental Plants: attract beneficial insects to your landscape by planting a wide variety of flowering annuals and perennials that will bloom over the entire season. Potomac Garden Center is stocked with ornamentals that thrive in our area – just make sure to water during the dry season.
Fruit Trees: June drop of excessive fruit is a natural occurrence and not always an indication of disease. Hand thin the fruits on plum, peach, apple and pear trees about 5-6″ apart and clean up the dropped fruit. Fruit bushes’ non-flowering canes should be tip cut at 36″. Lateral branches coming off these primocanes should be tip cut at 18″ for heavy fruiting next year. Thin foliage to encourage air movement so excessive moisture doesn’t encourage disease.
Fertilizer: plant fertilization should be done based on soil tests. Potomac Garden Center can help you with a wide variety of the best fertilizers and proper soil amendments for all types of plants and trees. Trees are fertilized after they drop their leaves in the fall, not the spring. Mature trees usually get their nutrients when the lawn is fertilized. Wait until fall also for bluegrass and fescue turf. If your plants are healthy – don’t be tempted to overfertilize – this can encourage sucking insect pests. Keep fertilizers away from hard runoff areas like driveways and walks to prevents pollution of groundwater.
Seasonal and Indoor Plants: June is a good time to root stem and leaf cuttings and to re-pot plants that have grown too big for their containers. Always repot into clean containers with no fertilizer salt residues. Potomac Garden Center carries lightweight, soil free potting mixes that contain peat moss and perlite – plus pots and containers of all sizes, shapes and colors that will bring an artful touch to your plants and give them plenty of room to flourish in.
If you have gardening questions our friendly and knowledgeable staff at our two Potomac Garden Center locations are ready and happy to help you in plant selection and care all year round. Stop by North Potomac or Urbana today for trees, shrubs, flowers and all the supplies you could possibly need this summer for a healthy, thriving – gorgeous garden.
