June ends with a warming trend; triple digits coming soon
Grapes grow larger with some pruning of fruit. At the very least, trim the last 2-3 inches off the bunches. (These already have been done.) Kathy Morrison
Prepare to get hot. According to the National Weather Service, June closes out with a warming trend. After several days of below-normal temperatures, this week’s afternoon highs will zip up to almost 100 degrees by Friday. That’s a 20-degree swing in just seven days.
This past week, Sacramento enjoyed four afternoons in the high 70s – 10 degrees below our late June average. Friday’s expected 99 degrees is 10 degrees above.
Friday likely will the hottest day of 2023, so far. Sacramento saw 94 degrees on June 4 and 95 on May 13. (Those were both records for those dates.) But otherwise, we’ve been relatively chilly.
But this coming 20-degree jump in high temperatures can stress fast-growing plants. Make sure your summer vegetables are deeply watered. Don’t let tomatoes, peppers, squash or eggplant dry out.
One good thing about this coming heat wave: It should wipe out powdery mildew and similar fungal diseases. They can’t stand temperatures above 95 degrees.
Meanwhile, concentrate on keeping your plants and yourself comfortable.
* Let the grass grow longer. Set the mower blades high to reduce stress on your lawn during summer heat. To cut down on evaporation, water your lawn deeply during the wee hours of the morning, between 2 and 8 a.m.
* Mulch, mulch, mulch! This “blanket” keeps moisture in the soil longer and helps your plants cope during hot weather.
* Trim off dead flowers from rose bushes to keep them blooming through the summer. Roses also benefit from deep watering and feeding now. A top dressing of aged compost will keep them happy. It feeds as well as keeps roots moist.
* Avoid pot “hot feet.” Place a 1-inch-thick board under container plants sitting on pavement. This little cushion helps insulate them from radiated heat.
* Tie up vines and stake tall plants such as gladiolus and lilies. That gives their heavy flowers some support.
* Dig and divide crowded bulbs after the tops have died down.
* Feed summer flowers with a slow-release fertilizer.
* Thin grapes on the vine for bigger, better clusters later this summer.
* Cut back fruit-bearing canes on berries after harvest.
* Feed camellias, azaleas and other acid-loving plants. Mulch to conserve moisture and reduce heat stress.
* Cut back Shasta daisies after flowering perennials to encourage a second bloom in the fall.
* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushier plants with many more flowers in September.
* From seed, plant corn, pumpkins, radishes, squash, melons and sunflowers.
* Plant basil to go with your tomatoes.
* Transplant summer annuals such as petunias, snapdragons, marigolds and zinnias.
* It’s also a good time to transplant perennial flowers including astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia, salvia and verbena.
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Garden Checklist for week of Nov. 3
November still offers good weather for fall planting:
* If you haven't already, it's time to clean up the remains of summer. Pull faded annuals and vegetables. Prune dead or broken branches from trees.
* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.
* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.
* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.
* Plant garlic and onions.
* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.
* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.
* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.
* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.
* For holiday blooms indoors, plant paperwhite narcissus bulbs now. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with 2 inches of rocks or pebbles. Place bulbs in the dish with the root end nestled in the rocks. Add water until it just touches the bottom of the bulbs. Place the dish in a sunny window. Add water as needed.
* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.
* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.
* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.
* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves this month. Leaf curl, which shows up in the spring, is caused by a fungus that winters as spores on the limbs and around the tree in fallen leaves. Sprays are most effective now.
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