What to Plant Now

Pop the gumboots back on, there’s still plenty to do in the garden in winter!

Gardening in June.

GARDENING IN JUNE

• Like us, many plants like to keep cosy. To protect your veggie patch from cold temperatures, add a mulch blanket around the base of your plants. Adding a cloche or moving your pots around to capture the sun are also e ective ways to keep plants happy in winter.

• Deciduous leaves can be collected to add to the compost and mulch pile.

• Winter is the time to plant cruciferous vegetable seeds including broccoli and cauliflower. These veggies are perfect to top up your vitamin C levels when they’re ready to harvest mid-to-late winter!

• From now through to early spring, garlic should be on your list of things to plant. Garlic is traditionally harvested on the longest day of the year – this year, that is on December 22. • Shallot bulbs also love winter soil.

• Top up on your salad greens by planting spinach, kale and lettuce.

• Tray-sow peas and snowpeas. If you don’t have sowing trays, why not upcycle some toilet rolls? Fold in the base to contain the soil, and once the seedlings are ready to plant out, the toilet roll pots can be planted directly into the garden bed to decompose as the seedlings grow! • Microgreens are excellent to grow on windowsills and sunny areas indoors.

• Plant out bok choy for late winter harvest, and cabbage for late spring harvest.

• Celery is another popular green vegetable to grow in the cooler months.

• If you’re a strawberry-lover, planting time starts now! A versatile crop, strawberries can be grown in garden beds, pots and containers. Of course, they will be a lovely addition to the likes of tarts and salads – or enjoyed on their own.

• Remove any weeds that make an appearance between newly planted seedlings. Weeds can steal much-needed sun and soil.

• Now is the time that all of the wonderful grapefruit, lemons, limes, mandarins and oranges are ready to harvest. Tamarillos are also ready to make their way to the kitchen! • Fancy some new flowers? June is ideal for planting roses as the cool temperatures are good for roots to get established before summer. Existing plants can be pruned. • Sow seeds for carrots and beetroot. Remember, if you’re short on space, stump-root varieties perform well in pots – hanging pots included.

• Winter annuals – including cineraria, pansies, viola, primrose and polyanthus – can be planted for some pops of colour. It’s also a good time to plant daphne and camellias.