“Now summer is in flower and nature’s hum Is never silent round her sultry bloom.” June gardening is an absolute pleasure with the warmer temperatures, longer days, and lovely, loose lushness displayed throughout our garden and orchard. Everywhere I look there’s a burst of colour and new growth. And I’m in my happy place, writing this post in the garden, listening to the birds and the water feature splashing in our largest pond. A very warm welcome to June’s horticultural update, let’s take a look at what to do in the garden this month.
What to do in the garden in June
Advance warning, there are a lot of photos in this post, so I’ll break it down into my usual sections: flowers, vegetables, jobs, wildlife. That way you can skip to whatever interests you most, although obviously I hope you’ll want to read everything, including all my June gardening tips and suggested jobs to do in the garden now as well 🙂
Summer flowering plants in June
“In June, as many as a dozen species may burst their buds on a single day.” There are SO many flowers blooming in our garden this month (as you’ll know if you follow my Instagram), so to make my life easier, I thought I’d share them semi-alphabetically. Starting with our glorious alliums in all their shapes and colours. Easy to plant as bulbs in Autumn, and easy to grow as they come back every year. Perfect low maintenance, fuss-free blooms. Special shoutout to the fabulous chandelier-effect Allium Nectaroscordums, new this year, which the bees are going MAD for.
Most of our spring bulbs finished flowering last month, but I can recommend Irises as flowering bulbs that are easy to grow, go on for ages, and need zero maintenance. Although our blue and purple ones are over now, the later flowering yellow and tigers-eye ones are still beautiful.
Other low maintenance and good value garden essentials are perennial plants and shrubs. Newly planted this year, we have some starry, crimson Astrantias and lovely, elegant, pink Verbascums.
If you’re looking for June gardening scent then you must plant a Philadelphus Belle Etoile (aka Mock Orange). Not only are the pure white blooms on this shrub beautiful to look at with the purple flush at the centre, their delicious fragrance really does smell of orange blossom. And of course my favourite wallflower, Erysimum Bowles Mauve, whose perfume welcomes us whenever we step in or out of the back door.
Big and blowsy attention-grabbing blooms are great for making a statement in any garden – like our neon pink Peony and striking red Poppy. Both are perennials, they come back every year, and require very little care now they’re established.
Dianthus are cottage garden favourites and great for scented pops of colour whether you use them as summer bedding plants or pot them up. Tip: pot up a handful near your seating so you can appreciate their fragrance more easily.
Other cottage garden staples are foxgloves and lupins. Having tried to grow these for years, I’m absolutely thrilled to see them both pop up this summer, having defeated the perishing slugs and snails at last.
No June gardening post would be complete without featuring some of our gorgeous roses. First up, we have a couple of white climbers, including one entwined with a honeysuckle for a double hit of fragrance.
Next, we have a pale pink climbing rose, and a bright pink/red bush rose that thinks it’s a climber…
Lastly, my absolute favourite scented rose, and this month’s cover picture, the glorious pale pink rambler that is Paul’s Himalayan Musk. I planted her about 8 years ago as a tiny little bare root rose at the foot of our old peach tree. Just look at her now <3 Her prolific clusters of flowers only last around 3-4 weeks every June but wow is she ever worth it. Stunning to look at, perfect as a cut flower, and with the most incredible perfume that follows you wherever you go.
No garden (cottage garden or otherwise) should be without at least one (preferably several) Salvias. Hardy, drought tolerant, and repeat flowering, they’re brilliant for splashes of colour and pollinators love them too.
Another must for the garden are some annual sweet peas* (annuals grow from seed, flower, set seed, and then die). As you may recall from last month’s post, I experimented with sowing my sweet pea flower seeds last November rather than February this year. And we’ve been picking 5-6 large, fragrant bunches of sweet peas for the house for nearly a month now (the more you pick, the more they flower). So November sowing is definitely good tip, and one I’ll be repeating this year 🙂
Other splashes of June gardening colour come from our Dahlia Roxy, the Canterbury Bells, and our lovely group 2 Clematis whose name I can’t remember. Group 1 clematis flower late winter/early spring, Group 2 flower late spring/early summer, and Group 3 flower after June. They all have different pruning rules, but you don’t need to get too hung up on these rules as most plants are pretty resilient.
Honourable mention to all the wildflowers that are thriving in different parts of our garden. From left to right, we have pink Herb Robert and yellow Welsh poppies in damp shade, red Valerian and purple Geranium Nodosum in dry shade underneath our horrible conifer hedge, and yellow Water Buttercup that’s gone more than a little OTT in our pond.
And on the subject of edible flowers, we have our honeysuckles and pelargoniums. You can use the flowers in salads or cake decorations, and I’ve found a great recipe for honeysuckle cordial that I want to try this summer. Tip: roses and dianthus flowers are edible too 🙂
What to do in the vegetable garden in June
June gardening doesn’t only see new flowers, we’ve begun to harvest our November-sown Robin Hood broad beads* already, although the Crimson Flowered broad beads* are still quite tiny. Unintentional successional sowing right there 🙂 And I bought some sugar snap pea seedlings a while back, which are now growing fast underneath a Pop Up Crop Protection Bird Net Cover Cloche* to guard against the pigeons. Tip: while you’re waiting for the pea pods to grow, pick some of the new shoots to munch in a salad, they’re delicious and chock full of vitamins too.
Our favourite ‘Rainbow Blend’ F1 Hybrid tomatoes* are growing away happily in their plant halos*. As you can see, the first flowers are appearing now. Over the years, I’ve found our tomato plants do much better when planted directly into the ground rather than grow bags. So what I do is mix the contents of a couple of grow bags into the soil, and plant the young plants directly into plant halos in the ground for easier watering and to encourage longer roots. Tip: when growing tomatoes, it’s essential to keep removing the side shoots so all the plant’s energy is focused on the main stem and fruiting shoots. And keep an eye out for signs of powdery mildew too (not that we’ve ever had any to date, luckily).
Our Burpless Tasty Green cucumbers* are also doing well – in their own plant halos in a grow bag – we’ve got 3 fresh cucumbers that are nearly ready to harvest already, yum.
With the better weather, June in the garden sees our fruit trees and bushes storming away too. Apples and pears…
Followed by cherries and plums (although we tend to leave the cherries to the birds and keep the plums for eating and plum jam)…
Plus what will be some deliciously sweet blueberries and strawberries in pots (as well as lots of self-sown wild strawberries)…
As well as some blackcurrants and gooseberries…
And some raspberries and rhubarb…
Our prolific grapevine comes back time and time again, no matter how hard I prune her 🙂 And our herbs are growing away merrily too – we’ve been harvesting fresh mint, chives, sage, fennel and thyme recently.
Lastly, a word about your houseplants, because June gardening isn’t only for outdoor plants. Tip: now that the warmer weather is here, take your indoor plants outside and let them get some fresh air, they’ll thank you for it – like our conservatory lemon plant, which has a few tiny lemons that will soon be ready for a gin and tonic…
June gardening jobs
Much like last month, my June gardening jobs are all about dead heading, tying in new growth, keeping on top of the weeding, and watering all the newly planted garden plants and the pots regularly – every couple of days in the really hot weather. (If you have hanging baskets, you should definitely be watering them regularly too). Other than this, my garden chores this month are minimal as all of my dahlias, Scabious, Spanish Eye Lavender, and Cobea Scandens vines* are in the ground now. I only have 9 Echinacea* seedlings to grow on for a little longer. In the meantime, our edible neon pink Nasturtiums* and edible vibrant blue Borage* will provide some welcome colour in our June garden soon.
Wildlife gardening jobs for June
As ever, Alan is keeping our bird feeders topped up with quality wild bird food* and high energy fat balls*. And if you caught my recent End of Year Teacher Gift Guide, you’ll know we have a beautiful new bird feeder as well – this is one gift that I’m keeping for me! He’s also been cutting the grass on a low setting and leaving pockets of wildflowers like these daisies and clover where we can, so pollinators can benefit.
And we’re keeping an eye on our ponds, trying to keep on top of clearing any duckweed and excess vegetation to give the frogs, newts, and fish plenty of room to thrive too. When Alan built the main pond, he landscaped sloping access so that birds, hedgehogs, and our cats can drink the water easily.
June gardening – a summary
And this marks the end of my June gardening update and reminders of what to do in the garden in this month. As always, I realise how lucky we are in our outside space and that it’s important to take time out and enjoy it. I mentioned I was writing this post in our garden – this has been my view whilst doing so. I only wish I could share the scents and sounds with you as well.
I hope you’ve enjoyed your virtual visit to June in our garden? And all my seasonal gardening tips in this latest month by month gardening round up? What’s your favourite section in this post? Do please let me know if you have any questions, I’ll try my best to answer them!
* This post features affiliate links but all opinions are my own (see my Disclaimer).
I always look forward to your gardening posts. Your garden is absolutely lovely and it’s nice to see how much you enjoy it. Thanks for sharing Lisa!
Thank you, Jodie, that’s lovely to hear, glad you enjoy them!
Wonderful! How I would love to have a garden.
Thank you – it’s a lot of work though!
I love all the blossoming and colours that are coming out this month; it’s such an uplifting thing to see (and even read about) — thanks for sharing what’s going on in your lovely garden!
Thank you, Molly, that’s exactly how I feel – glad you enjoyed the round up 🙂
That tiger’s eye iris is absolutely stunning! We have yellow and purple irises, and day lilies, but I just love the amber colors with the streaks of gold.
Our garden is finally picking up thanks to plentiful rain and cooler weather! We are getting peas, lettuce, herbs, and flowers, and just did a round of blueberry picking. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your green space as it continues to evolve!
It’s so unusual, isn’t it? Such a good name! Glad to hear your garden is beginning to yield some summer harvests, Jaya, your pickings sound colourful and delicious 🙂
Such beautiful photos! My irises have just gone over, but the dahlias and roses are now starting to bloom.
Thank you, Nikki, lots of deadheading to look forward to then 🙂
Those pale pink roses are beautiful, I loved reading your gardening post for June! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
They really are! Thank you, Lucy, that’s great to hear x
Your garden is so pretty and a great place to enjoy the summer sun. Your fresh herbs look great. I can’t wait to have my own space so that I can grow herbs and fruits. Thank you for sharing Lisa.
Lauren xx
We are very lucky, Lauren, and I do know that. Perhaps you could try some window box or hanging basket herbs and strawberries in the meantime? x
June is such a great month for harvesting all the veg that is here! We had buckets of broad beans but they have now finished, we are onto the peas, strawberries, raspberries and red currants now. I also love the Sweet Peas so much – definitely one of my favourite flowers, along with cornflower which is starting too 🙂
Oh yes, it is – it sounds like you’ve been REALLY lucky with an early harvest though, Caroline, lucky you!
Beautifully written, I love bougenvilla that comes in June.
Your roses are very pretty.
We also have at home haskap or siberrian blueberry..
Thank you, Gabi 🙂 I don’t think we have the right climate for bougainvillea here, sadly, but I live in hope!
Oh my goodness so many beautiful flowers blossoming in your garden at the moment, Lisa! I loved all the photos 🙂 I’d love to grow my own strawberries, we eat a lot of them!
Thank you, Jenny – I thought you grew some strawberries outside your office last year? Perfect location for inspiration grazing!
Love looking at all your beautiful flowers – I’m just getting into gardening and yours is so interesting
Thank you so much, that’s very kind 🙂
I’ve never been much into gardening but as I’ve gotten older I’ve gained a newfound love for plants and have had the idea of starting on with my son this summer! I look forward to more posts like these from you!
That’s such a great idea, start them young and get them keen from the get go! Good luck, Willow, and thank you 🙂
Oh wow… your garden looks way much lovely in June. Have a great summer, Lisa.
Thank you, Fadima, that’s so kind – and the same to you!
I always love reading your gardening posts, I find them so interesting. I’m not much of a gardener myself but I always pass your posts on to my Nan who loves gardening. Your summer flowers look absolutely beautiful, what lovely colours! I love the vibrant colours that come out during the summer. Thank you so much for sharing with us Xo
Elle – ellegracedeveson.com
Aw, thank you, Elle, that’s very kind – I hope I can do your Nan justice, I’m sure she’s got far more experience and knowledge than me! x
Love reading your gardening posts! I’m a bit of a newbie although I’m already picking up things I do/don’t want to do next year. This years been a bit of an experiment for me. I’ve loved it though. We’ve been picking our broad beans too. We’ve had a decent amount from them which is nice. I’m going to try sow some more peas in the hope that we’ll have some ready for autumn. I definitely should have done more peas earlier in the year. Your garden looks stunning as always!
Claire.X
http://www.clairemac.co.uk
Thank you, Claire – but that’s the joy of gardening, finding out what you do and don’t like. Nature is a great teacher, and I’m always learning (even the hard way!). Happy sowing and harvesting later on this year x
Your sweetpeas are lovely. Unfortunately my back garden is north facing, so I struggle with certain plants. I have everlasting perennial sweetpeas and they do scramble up an obelisk quite happily but they’re not in flower yet and I don’t get masses of blooms. My front garden is south facing and I have a rose bed there which I love. Your post would be of great interest to my blog’s readers, would be great if you joined the link-up!
Thank you, we’re very proud! That’s a shame about the north face where sweet peas are concerned but there are plenty of plants that don’t require as much direct sun – hydrangeas, clematis, foxgloves. Glad you can enjoy your roses though!
I adore sweetpeas, poppies and roses of course. Yours are simply stunning!
Thank you, Jenni, that’s very kind!
This is a great gardening post. It is so interesting. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you so much, I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Oooh I love this – your garden is always so beautiful! I really love all the bright colours that come out in June. The Astrantias are such a cool shape and I’m loving the Paul’s Himalayan Musk, it’s such a pretty colour! Thank you so much for sharing x
Thank you, Ceri, that’s very kind of you – yes, the Astrantias are gorgeous, I want to grow some more now! x
Oh wow… I love the variety of gorgeous flowers you can grow! And that sweet pea bouquet is absolutely gorgeous!! I love your lovely bird feeder, too… watching the birds that come by must be so much fun!
Our entire house smells of sweet peas now, we have about 10 posies! And yes, we just need to keep the bird feeders high so our cats can’t reach them…
The flowers are beautiful. You have a lovely garden.
xoxo
Lovely
http://www.mynameislovely.com
Thank you, that’s very kind.
oooh, i love this time of year for colour in the garden! You have some beautiful flowers.
https://thelifestylebloggeruk.com
I do too, thank you, Becky, that’s very kind!
Wow..such a lovely garden and beautiful flowers 🙂
Thank you very much 🙂
Thanks for sharing your garden for last month, mine has been going well apart from watering and deadheading 🙂
Deadheading and watering are pretty much constant at this time of year, aren’t they?
Sweet peas are looking gorgeous. I am in love with your garden, so many beautiful flowers. It’s stunning.
Thank you, Anca, that’s so kind 🙂