Continue to pinch back garden mums to insure bushy growth until mid-July

Pinching back mums

Be on the lookout for Japanese beetles. Apply Sevin (carbaryl) frequently to infested plants.

Japanese Beetles

Water plants early in the day. Late day watering encourages diseases.

Water Early

Watch for asparagus beetles. Pick off or spray with Neem if infestation is severe.

Asparagus Beetles

As the temps rise, make sure that plants are watered early in the day This will prevent heat stress on tender transplants. Repeated wilting of water-stressed plants can cause many problems including lack of fruit set and flower drop.

Water Early in the Day

As corn and beans emerge, be sure and thin the seedlings to insure air movement between plants. This will prevent diseases. Space corn at 12 inches and beans at 4 inches.

Thin corn & bean plants

Stake or cage tomatoes before they bend to the ground. This will give bigger harvests and will also prevent diseases. Be sure to anchor cages in to the ground.

Tomato Cage

As hanging baskets get larger, they will require more water. Some plants such as New Guinea Impatiens and ferns will require water twice a day during hot weather.

Watering Hanging Baskets

Deadhead flowers in the garden as they fade. This will encourage additional flowering at a quicker rate. Not all flowers require deadheading but roses, geraniums, marigolds, hydrangeas and most perennials will benefit from it.

Deadhead Flowers

Squash plants have both male and female flowers on the same plant but they don’t always start flowering at the same time. If you have flowers but no squash be patient-the male flower is sometimes a little late but you’ll have squash to harvest before too long!

Squash Flowers

A soaker hose laid in the vegetable or flower garden makes watering a breeze. Set it on a timer and you’re good to go. It also conserves water and soaks the plants deeply.

Soaker Hose

Squash bugs are attacking squash and cucumber plants and they can quickly kill a good plant. Spray with Pyrethrin sprays, making sure to get into the dense foliage at the center of the plant. Repeat every 7-10 days.

Squash Bug

Sucker tomatoes when suckers are 4-6 inches long. Plant suckers in the ground or pit them in water. You’ll have a late crop of tomatoes that didn’t cost a penny.

Sucker Tomatoes

Mexican Bean Beetles are showing up on green beans by mid-June. Pick off coppery egg masses and bristled larvae. Be sure and check the undersides of the leaves. Use liquid Sevin or Spinosad (organic). Both can cause harm to honeybees so spray late in the evening when honeybees are no longer foraging.

Mexican Bean Beetle

Prune “bleeder” trees in June and early July. Bleeder trees drips large amounts of sap in the spring and fall. While this does no damage, it is unsightly. Common bleeder trees are maple, birch, elm and honey locust.

Bleeder Tree

Brown patch (large irregular patches of dead turf grass) is showing up in lawns as the weather heats up. Apply a fungicide containing azoxystrobin once a month.

Brown Patch

Cucumbers are prolific bearers and are a favorite low maintenance crop for home gardeners. They tend to get bitter as the summer progresses, however. Keeping them evenly hydrated along with regular feeding can help prevent this not-so-tasty problem.

Cucumbers

Most perennials don’t flower all summer long. A good way to get increased flowering is regular deadheading. Most perennials will put on another flush of flowers if deadheading is done regularly.

Deadheading Perennials

With the onset of hot and humid weather, slime mold or dog vomit mold is showing up in mulched beds everywhere. While not exactly a mold or fungus  it is unsightly and can spread quickly. It is not damaging and can easily be scooped up and disposed of in a garbage bag. It can also be washed away with the water hose. There are no chemicals available for controlling slime mold but it usually disappears with a weather change.

Slime Mold

The cicadas will be here soon and along with them comes the Cicada Killer wasp. Although it is large and mean looking, it is a very social solitary wasp. It digs a hole and lays its eggs and begins capturing cicadas to feed to its newly hatched young. You’ll see pencil-size holes in areas of bare ground. Cicada Killers don’t sting and will go away after a few weeks. Control isn’t practical. Just leave them alone and all will be well.

Cicada Killer Wasp

As corn begins to silk, start applying carbaryl (liquid Sevin) to the silk area to prevent corn ear worms. Apply at 3-5 day intervals until silks turn brown. Do this and prevent those horrible caterpillars from invading your corn ears!

Corn Worm