Gardener’s Almanac: Gardening Tips

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Photo courtesy MOTHER EARTH NEWS editors
These gardening tips will have your garden looking great for the summer months.

Maritime Canada & New England

So much happens in June and July — from dodging late frosts to harvesting the first ripe tomatoes under the shade of a wide-brimmed sun hat. Blooming lupine and irises herald the time to transplant warm-weather crops such as tomatoes, peppers and eggplant — and melons and winter squash for those who get a jump on the season. Salads start to include more greens. The asparagus patch provides daily feasts and can be picked until mid-July if it’s well established. Planting tasks shift to mulching duty as the soil warms and there is more need to conserve moisture and discourage weeds. Roses bloom and young robins fledge in early July, just as the first summer squash and broccoli mature. Second or third seedings of lettuce, cilantro and peas can go in every few weeks. Sour cherries and currants ripen, and then the long- awaited first tomatoes — a fantasy that started back in December while reading seed catalogs.

 
Roberta Bailey, FEDCO Seeds, Waterville, Maine

  • Published on Jun 1, 2005
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