Southwest Gardener's June Checklist

Protect your plants from too much sun while waiting for rain relief, and guess what? Those cacti might need a drink

Noelle Johnson January 1, 2000

Houzz Contributor. Horticulturist, freelance writer and Certified Arborist who loves living and gardening in the desert Southwest. She loves creating gardens that are beautiful, yet low-maintenance. Vegetable gardening are her newest passion. Her motto is, "Gardening in the desert isn't hard...it's just different".

Houzz Contributor. Horticulturist, freelance writer and Certified Arborist who loves... More

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Desert gardeners don't need the calendar to tell them that summer has arrived; all they have to do is step outside. While the landscape may be dotted with summer-flowering shrubs and perennials, June is the toughest month for plants because of the heat and lack of humidity. As a result, regular watering and minimal pruning should be the focus of those who garden in desert areas.

The warm days and cool nights for gardeners in upper elevations make June the perfect time to get out in the garden and plant bush beans, stake tomatoes and deadhead roses. There is still time left to plant balled and burlapped trees and shrubs this month as well — as long as you are willing to give them extra care through summer.

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The American Southwest is a vast area, covering all of Arizona and New Mexico as well as parts of California, Nevada, Texas and Utah. The regions of the Southwest are varied and include low deserts, high deserts and mountainous regions, covering USDA zones 5 though 9.

All Desert Regions

While it may be hot outside, the garden is awash in bright colors from flowering shrubs and perennials.

Plants struggle most in June, when the temperatures are hot and the humidity is very low. Relief will come with the summer rains and higher humidity in July. In the meantime it is important to make sure that your plants are receiving enough water.

Shown: Flowering 'Rio Bravo' sage, Arizona yellow bells and bougainvillea

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Water newly planted shrubs and perennials more frequently than established plants. Because new plants haven't had enough time to grow a large root system, they need more water than established plants that have been in the ground for more than a year.

Young trees will need to be watered more frequently as well until they have been in the ground for three or more years.

How often to water is largely dependent on how hot it is. This guide from the Desert Botanical Garden tells you how often to water, based on temperature.

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Water your cacti and succulents this month if there is no rain. You might be surprised to discover that cacti and succulents need water in summer — especially if rainfall is absent.

Because there is generally little rainfall in June, go ahead and water your cacti once and succulents at least twice this month.

Shown: Flowering agave

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Watch for signs of sun and drought stress in your succulents. Shriveling or yellowing of the leaves, as with the agave shown here, can be a sign of heat stress or lack of water.

If any of your succulents are showing these signs, water deeply every two weeks and put up some temporary shade through summer. For quick, temporary shade, place a lawn chair over the affected plant or in front of it as protection from the afternoon sun.

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Plant flowering vines and desert-adapted trees. Flowering vines are a great way to add beauty to a boring, bare expanse of a fence or garden wall. Summer-flowering vines include pink trumpet vine (Podranea ricasoliana, zones 9 to 11), trumpet vine (Campsis radicans, zones 4 to 10), Hall's Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica 'Halliana', zones 4 to 9) and queen's wreath (Antigonon leptopus, zones 8 to 10).

While it is best to wait until summer rains arrive to plant shrubs, you can go ahead and plant desert-adapted trees in June. Texas ebony (Ebenopsis ebano, zones 9 to 11), palo verde (Parkinsonia spp), mesquite (Prosopis spp), desert willow (Chilopsis linearis, zones 7 to 9), shown here, and palo blanco (Acacia willardiana, zones 9 to 11) are all good choices to plant in your landscape this summer.

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Protect vegetables from the afternoon sun. Most vegetables will appreciate relief from the hot afternoon sun. If you have a tree located to the west of your vegetable garden, you may have enough shade already.

However, for those of us who do not have a tree where you need one, there are other ways to create temporary shade for your summer vegetable garden. One way is to grow vines up a trellis that will block the afternoon sun. Shade cloth that blocks at least 30 percent of the sun also works great. Sunflowers planted in a row can help shade your vegetables too.

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Fertilize your warm-season lawn. After your spring application of fertilizer, wait eight weeks before fertilizing again. Use a fertilizer that is high in nitrogen. To avoid fertilizer "burn," read the directions on the fertilizer package carefully; don't overapply. When in doubt always apply slightly less. Whenever you apply fertilizer, it is very important to water it in deeply afterward.

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Upper Elevations (Over 6,000 Feet)

Plant balled and burlapped trees. June is the last month for planting these trees until next spring. Add a maple tree (Acer sp) to your landscape for beautiful fall color. Or how about adding some contrasting color to your garden by planting a purple-leaf plum tree (Prunus cerasifera, zones 4 to 9), shown here?

The key to successfully planting a tree comes down to the hole:

Dig a hole three times wider then the root ball.
The depth of the hole should be the same as the root ball, not deeper (trees planted too deeply suffer from a lack of oxygen in the soil).

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Fertilize roses once blooms appear. Use your favorite rose fertilizer, following the package directions, and water in deeply afterward. Spray off any aphids with a strong jet of water.

Shown: 'Peace' hybrid tea rose

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Provide support for young tomato plants. Tomatoes are quite floppy and need support to keep them off the ground. You'll find a variety of staking systems at your local nursery.

Many tomato varieties grow quite tall, so look for cages you can stack or add a strong support pole a few inches away from the stalk when planting. Loosely tie the tomato vine to the pole as it grows.

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Plant successive crops of vegetables for a summer-long harvest. Extend your harvest of crops like bush beans (shown), carrots and lettuce by staggering the planting dates. For example: Divide your crop of bush beans in half and plant them two weeks apart; you will be able to enjoy bush beans all summer long.

Get ready for July. The humidity will be rising with summer rains on their way. I'll show next month how to prepare your garden for the high winds and torrential rains of our monsoon storms.

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