June is a good month to plant potted shrubs

It has been said that spring being a tough act to follow, God created June. June is time for the French Open and Wimbledon tennis matches. Summer is also when Americans contract leprosy, the scourge of the Bible. Around 150 Americans get leprosy each year, when they hunt and eat armadillos that carry the infection. And of course, for gardeners, June is bustin' out all over.

June is also time to plan ahead and plant seeds for your fall garden.

Fall crops are cool-weather crops that are often better grown in the fall than spring, because springtime can be unusually warm, and this stunts the growth of cool-weather crops.

Because the ground is warm and probably already tilled from your spring planting, you can easily direct seed the slowest-growing fall crops such as parsnips and Brussels sprouts, and in a week or two plant broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, kale, and late-season lettuce. This is a good time to make use of your garden's shade. Cool-weather crops grow well when shaded by tall plants such as tomatoes and pole beans. If your garden is hot and sunny, you may want to put up some artificial shade such as cover cloth, or even branches and brush to shade the soil and keep the ground cooler.

Because of the heat of summer, your cool-weather crops will germinate much slower than in spring. Because lettuce and spinach germinate best in cool weather, you can start these indoors out of direct sunlight and transplant them later into the garden. You can plant fall greens such as mustard, along with beets, Chinese cabbage, and turnips.

June is also when you want to make succession plantings every two weeks of carrots, lettuce, arugula, and even quick-growing radishes. This way you will have a continuous supply of vegetables rather than have everything ripen at once.

Because newly seeded plants dry out quickly, you will want to water regularly. On the hottest days, you may need to water twice to keep the delicate seedlings moist.

June is a good month to plant potted shrubs, including roses. It is also when bugs are at their worst, so hand-pick Japanese beetles and use a good organic spray. You can also use food-quality diatomaceous earth as a powder. Diatomaceous earth has tiny, sharp edges which cut and kill insects, but it is harmless to humans and pets.

June is also a good time to dig up and divide spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils. By separating the clumps and replanting them in the fall, you will have far more flowers next season.

Some early crops such as lettuce or kale may “bolt” or go to seed during hot weather. You can either rip the plants up and start over, or cut off any flower spikes so the plants don't waste energy producing seeds. Also, leaves tend to turn bitter when a plant is flowering.

This is a good time to side dress your crops with compost or slow-acting organic fertilizer. Side dressing means you work the fertilizer into the soil alongside the plants, rather than digging it deeply into the ground.

With some steady water and sunshine, your June garden should be ready to bust out all over. Just don't eat the armadillos.