Garden To-Do / June
June marks the quiet turn into winter here on the St Francis coast. The days are the shortest of the year, the light softens, and the garden slows right down, which makes this a good month for pruning, planning and getting the soil ready for spring.
Expect mild, settled days with daytime highs of around 19 to 20°C, cooling to about 12 to 13°C at night. June has the shortest days of the year, so plants grow slowly and need far less water than in summer.
Wind is part of life here, and June is usually among the windiest months of the year. The pattern is familiar: warm, dry berg winds from the north-west ahead of a cold front, then strong south-westerlies as the front pushes through. Stake anything tall and check your ties before the bigger blows arrive.
Rain tends to come in a few wet frontal spells rather than steadily. It is usually enough that established beds need little, if any, extra water, and June is also typically our least humid month, so pots dry out faster than you would expect.
Plant trees and large shrubs while the soil still holds some warmth, winter-planted trees wake up ready to grow in spring. Prune deciduous fruit trees once they are fully dormant, but leave the roses for July. Stake young trees firmly against the fronts.
Plant hardy, water-wise shrubs and groundcovers so their roots settle before spring. Cut back spent perennials, divide crowded clumps, and after a berg wind, check that nothing has dried out, those warm winds are thirstier than sunshine.
Keep the winter colour coming: pansies, violas, poppies, primulas and snapdragons can all still be planted, and a light, balanced feed on a mild day keeps the display going through the cold months.
Sow and plant cool-season crops: peas, broad beans, spinach, kale, lettuce, radishes and onion seedlings, and get the last garlic in early in the month. Parsley, coriander and chives all enjoy winter here. Keep beds mulched to hold warmth and moisture, and pick leafy crops regularly.
Top up mulch, clear leaves from gutters and drains before the wet spells, and sharpen and oil your tools. Work compost into tired beds so the soil is ready for spring, and ease right off the watering, the garden needs very little now. The aloes are coming into flower, so keep an eye out for the sunbirds they bring.
Indigenous plant of the month
When the winter garden goes quiet, the red-hot poker lights it up. Above a fountain of narrow, arching, grass-like leaves rise tall, sturdy stems, each topped with a dense torch of tubular flowers, fiery red in bud, opening to orange and yellow down the spike. Different forms flower at different times of year, and the cooler-season pokers are pure gold in a coastal winter garden, flowering when colour is scarce and the sunbirds need it most.
Plant pokers in full sun in soil that drains well, give them water through their growing season, and then leave them alone, they genuinely resent being moved or divided, and can take a year to forgive you for it. Used in bold clumps along a fence, beside a pond or among grasses and aloes, they bring height, structure and a constant traffic of sunbirds and bees. Tidy away spent spikes and old leaves and an established clump will perform for many years.
Plant information with thanks to PlantZAfrica (pza.sanbi.org).
See you at the nursery,
Clint
The Farmyard Nursery
Need a hand getting started? WhatsApp us or visit the nursery, and we will point you to the right plants for the season.
