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Dig In: Garden checklist for week of June 7

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED JUN 6, 2020

Tomato plants are flowering, with harvests yet ahead. Tomatoes and other summer vegetables still can be planted now; look for fast-developing varieties. (Photos: Kathy Morrison)

Great planting weather as mild temperatures return

Just like gardening, all weather is local. The greater Sacramento area saw several examples during recent storm forecasts; some neighborhoods received cloudbursts, others hardly a drop.

Likewise, thunderstorms are expected to move through Northern California this weekend, primarily impacting the foothills and Sierra. In the Valley, we'll mostly feel the bluster of winds pushing that weather system east.

Meanwhile, high temperatures dropped 30 degrees from last week's triple-digit highs. According to the National Weather Service, Sacramento will enjoy two days in the mid 70s before the mercury heats up again midweek. Even then, afternoons should stay in the endurable low 90s -- not blazing 100s. By Friday, we slip back into the low 80s -- a very nice beginning to June.

Make the most of these mild weather conditions. If you want to add to (or start) your summer garden, do it now.

* From seed, plant beans, corn, melons, pumpkins, radishes, squash and sunflowers.
* Plant basil and other annual herbs.
* It's not too late to transplant tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash and other summer favorites. Look for fast- developing varieties.
* Transplant summer annuals such as petunias, marigolds and zinnias.
* Transplant perennial flowers including astilbe, columbine, coneflowers, coreopsis, dahlias, rudbeckia, salvia and verbena.
* Dig and divide crowded bulbs after the tops have died down.
* Cut back Shasta daisies after flowering to encourage a second bloom in the fall.
* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushier plants with many more flowers in September.
* Feed summer flowers with a slow-release fertilizer.
* Feed camellias, azaleas and other acid-loving plants. Mulch to conserve moisture and reduce heat stress.
* Trim off dead flowers from rose bushes.

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Garden Checklist for week of July 21

Your garden needs you!

* Keep your vegetable garden watered, mulched and weeded. Water before 8 a.m. to reduce the chance of fungal infection and to conserve moisture.

* Feed vegetable plants bone meal, rock phosphate or other fertilizers high in phosphate to stimulate more blooms and fruiting. (But wait until daily high temperatures drop out of the 100s.)

* Don’t let tomatoes wilt or dry out completely. Give tomatoes a deep watering two to three times a week.

* Harvest vegetables promptly to encourage plants to produce more. Squash especially tends to grow rapidly in hot weather. Keep an eye on zucchini.

* Pinch back chrysanthemums for bushy plants and more flowers in September.

* Remove spent flowers from roses, daylilies and other bloomers as they finish flowering.

* Pinch off blooms from basil so the plant will grow more leaves.

* Cut back lavender after flowering to promote a second bloom.

* It's not too late to add a splash of color. Plant petunias, snapdragons, zinnias and marigolds.

* From seed, plant corn, pumpkins, radishes, winter squash and sunflowers.

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