Photo by Megan Rene/Fotolia
##West — Sharon Hanna##
**Save soil**
Most annuals need only about eight inches of soil. Partly fill oversize containers with leaves or crumpled news-paper, then add potting soil. Plant some herbs instead of traditional “basket stuffers.” **Try morning glories**
Grow annual vines to create instant privacy, add a vertical element or cover an ugly fence. Try morning glories: the intense purple ‘Grandpa Ott’s’ or the new baby blue ‘Glacier Star’ (both from Renee’s Garden, reneesgarden.com). Seed them in starter mix indoors, keep them on the dry side and don’t feed them. When the weather warms reliably, transplant them to lean soil with no added fertilizer and don’t be put off by initial slow growth. **Feed in moderation**
Don’t over-fertilize. Aphids are attracted to succulent new foliage swollen with nitrogen fertilizers. If you do see aphids, wait a week or two for beneficial insects such as ladybugs and syrphid (hover) flies to show up and do their jobs. Or spray aphids off with the hose—they won’t be able to climb back onto the plant. **And don't forget to...**
Make frequent, small sowings of mesclun and Asian greens for snipping into salads. Keep moist and harvest quickly. *Sharon Hanna is a writer, seed specialist and director of a school horticulture program in Vancouver (Zone 7)*
##Prairies — Donna Balzer##
**Set out heat-lovers**
Plant warm-season crops such as cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers outdoors starting the second week of June. If the garden is at a high elevation, use a floating row cover (a sheet of spun-bond polyester) to keep in heat until the full moon on the 18th. **Dial down irrigation**
Warm rains provide plenty of moisture in June. Use a rain sensor or manually override an automatic system so you don’t water more than small plants and cool nights demand. Come July, bump the rates up to one inch per week until fall. **Give roots a boost**
Now is the time to plant trees and shrubs. Always use a root stimulant to ensure growth of fine root hairs—these absorb nutrients and water. I like products with kelp and B vitamins for fast root growth. **Use ladybug labour**
Watch for ladybug larvae—unlike their familiar red-and-black-spotted parents, they look like small black alligators, often with orange markings. Pinch off a leaf with larvae on it and, using a soft twist tie, attach it to a plant infested with aphids. The larvae will make short work of them. **And don't forget to...**
Spray compost tea now on plants and lawns to prevent powdery mildew later. *Donna Balzer is a garden consultant, author, speaker and radio personality. She lives in Calgary (Zone 3).* ##Central — Mark Cullen## **Put down mulch**
Add a two-inch layer of finely ground pine or cedar bark as a mulch over the root zones of all roses, perennials, flowering shrubs and trees. Mulch is the gardener’s secret weapon—it minimizes weeding and holds moisture in the soil. **Feed container plants**
Apply a slow-release, once-a-season fertilizer or use compost tea weekly (for tea, steep a pillowcase full of compost in a barrel of water for several days) to keep potted plants thriving. **Hit the veggie patch**
Plant successive crops of lettuce, snap beans, carrots and radishes, one each week in June. Dust the leaves of potato plants with dia-tomaceous earth to control the dreaded potato beetle. **Twirl your tomatoes**
I discovered aluminum spiral tomato stakes two years ago and have not looked back. They stand over six feet tall and require no tying of the plant. You just twist the stem around the stake as it grows. **Give grass a boost**
Fertilize your lawn with a slow-release nitrogen product if you have not done so yet this season. If you applied fertilizer in late April or May, reapply in late June or early July. To prevent weeds, don’t cut grass shorter than three inches. **And don't forget to...** Fertilize your roses. They will never look better—cut some to enjoy indoors. *Mark Cullen is an author and radio host on CFRB in Toronto (Zone 6). He also appears weekly on CTV’s *Canada AM. ##Atlantic — Carla Allen## **Salt your tomatoes**
Treat your tomato transplants to one tablespoon of Epsom salts to improve fruiting. Prevent blossom end rot by keeping soil evenly moist and applying a layer of mulch. Don’t over-fertilize and avoid damaging the roots while cultivating. **Switch off power tools**
Use traditional hand rakes and stiff corn brooms instead of blowers to save fuel, as well as reduce noise and air pollution. Minimize the need for trimmers to cut grass and weeds by mulching along walks and around structures such as posts. **De-grass. eh?**
Instead of lawn, grow native with indigenous ground covers such as partridgeberry, bearberry, bunchberry and checkerberry. Many offer year-round beauty, flowers and berries. Mix plenty of organic matter into the area prior to planting and keep moist while transplants or plugs become established. **Stake fruit trees**
Help young fruit trees develop strong root systems and straight trunks. Set sturdy stakes around each sapling and use old nylon stockings to anchor the trunk between but not rubbing against the stakes. **And don't forget to...**
Vacate the garden when lightning threatens. Although this powerful force is an excellent source of nitrogen for your plants, you should view it from the safety of indoors. *Carla Allen is an award-winning reporter/photographer and garden columnist. She lives in Yarmouth, NS (Zone 6).*
Most annuals need only about eight inches of soil. Partly fill oversize containers with leaves or crumpled news-paper, then add potting soil. Plant some herbs instead of traditional “basket stuffers.” **Try morning glories**
Grow annual vines to create instant privacy, add a vertical element or cover an ugly fence. Try morning glories: the intense purple ‘Grandpa Ott’s’ or the new baby blue ‘Glacier Star’ (both from Renee’s Garden, reneesgarden.com). Seed them in starter mix indoors, keep them on the dry side and don’t feed them. When the weather warms reliably, transplant them to lean soil with no added fertilizer and don’t be put off by initial slow growth. **Feed in moderation**
Don’t over-fertilize. Aphids are attracted to succulent new foliage swollen with nitrogen fertilizers. If you do see aphids, wait a week or two for beneficial insects such as ladybugs and syrphid (hover) flies to show up and do their jobs. Or spray aphids off with the hose—they won’t be able to climb back onto the plant. **And don't forget to...**
Make frequent, small sowings of mesclun and Asian greens for snipping into salads. Keep moist and harvest quickly. *Sharon Hanna is a writer, seed specialist and director of a school horticulture program in Vancouver (Zone 7)*
(continued below)
Plant warm-season crops such as cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers outdoors starting the second week of June. If the garden is at a high elevation, use a floating row cover (a sheet of spun-bond polyester) to keep in heat until the full moon on the 18th. **Dial down irrigation**
Warm rains provide plenty of moisture in June. Use a rain sensor or manually override an automatic system so you don’t water more than small plants and cool nights demand. Come July, bump the rates up to one inch per week until fall. **Give roots a boost**
Now is the time to plant trees and shrubs. Always use a root stimulant to ensure growth of fine root hairs—these absorb nutrients and water. I like products with kelp and B vitamins for fast root growth. **Use ladybug labour**
Watch for ladybug larvae—unlike their familiar red-and-black-spotted parents, they look like small black alligators, often with orange markings. Pinch off a leaf with larvae on it and, using a soft twist tie, attach it to a plant infested with aphids. The larvae will make short work of them. **And don't forget to...**
Spray compost tea now on plants and lawns to prevent powdery mildew later. *Donna Balzer is a garden consultant, author, speaker and radio personality. She lives in Calgary (Zone 3).* ##Central — Mark Cullen## **Put down mulch**
Add a two-inch layer of finely ground pine or cedar bark as a mulch over the root zones of all roses, perennials, flowering shrubs and trees. Mulch is the gardener’s secret weapon—it minimizes weeding and holds moisture in the soil. **Feed container plants**
Apply a slow-release, once-a-season fertilizer or use compost tea weekly (for tea, steep a pillowcase full of compost in a barrel of water for several days) to keep potted plants thriving. **Hit the veggie patch**
Plant successive crops of lettuce, snap beans, carrots and radishes, one each week in June. Dust the leaves of potato plants with dia-tomaceous earth to control the dreaded potato beetle. **Twirl your tomatoes**
I discovered aluminum spiral tomato stakes two years ago and have not looked back. They stand over six feet tall and require no tying of the plant. You just twist the stem around the stake as it grows. **Give grass a boost**
Fertilize your lawn with a slow-release nitrogen product if you have not done so yet this season. If you applied fertilizer in late April or May, reapply in late June or early July. To prevent weeds, don’t cut grass shorter than three inches. **And don't forget to...** Fertilize your roses. They will never look better—cut some to enjoy indoors. *Mark Cullen is an author and radio host on CFRB in Toronto (Zone 6). He also appears weekly on CTV’s *Canada AM. ##Atlantic — Carla Allen## **Salt your tomatoes**
Treat your tomato transplants to one tablespoon of Epsom salts to improve fruiting. Prevent blossom end rot by keeping soil evenly moist and applying a layer of mulch. Don’t over-fertilize and avoid damaging the roots while cultivating. **Switch off power tools**
Use traditional hand rakes and stiff corn brooms instead of blowers to save fuel, as well as reduce noise and air pollution. Minimize the need for trimmers to cut grass and weeds by mulching along walks and around structures such as posts. **De-grass. eh?**
Instead of lawn, grow native with indigenous ground covers such as partridgeberry, bearberry, bunchberry and checkerberry. Many offer year-round beauty, flowers and berries. Mix plenty of organic matter into the area prior to planting and keep moist while transplants or plugs become established. **Stake fruit trees**
Help young fruit trees develop strong root systems and straight trunks. Set sturdy stakes around each sapling and use old nylon stockings to anchor the trunk between but not rubbing against the stakes. **And don't forget to...**
Vacate the garden when lightning threatens. Although this powerful force is an excellent source of nitrogen for your plants, you should view it from the safety of indoors. *Carla Allen is an award-winning reporter/photographer and garden columnist. She lives in Yarmouth, NS (Zone 6).*
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