VEGETABLES

* Vegetable crops generally need another dose of fertilizer about 5 to 6 weeks after planting or when fruit starts to form. * Check and harvest cucumbers, squash and green beans regularly (daily) to help keep plants producing. They also mature quickly and are best harvested while young and tender. * Use 2 hands to pull beans, cucumbers, squash, etc. to avoid breaking the plant.

HARVESTING VEGGIES?

• There is still time to plant tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, green beans, winter squash.
• Use row covers to exclude potato & cucumber beetles, flea beetles, leafhoppers and vine borers.
• Water the garden early in the day to allow the foliage to dry before nightfall. Wet foliage overnight can lead to disease development.
• Watch for dark brown spots in tomato leaves. This could be early blight and can be prevented with a fungicide spray.

ORNAMENTALS

• Irises and daylilies can be divided even while in bloom. This is useful if you need to keep flower colors separated. Remove any remaining flowers, cut leaves half way back and replant the divisions as soon as possible.
• Prune out dieback from hybrid rhododendron, azaleas, mountain laurel and blueberry. Anytime is a good time to prune dead wood from trees and shrubs.
• Check new plantings for water. Trees and shrubs can take 2-3 years to fully get established and herbaceous perennials up to 1 year.
• Pinch chrysanthemums to encourage more blooms and stockier, bushier plants.
• There is still time to plant seeds for fast maturing annuals such as cosmos, zinnias, marigolds, and small sunflowers.
• If you have moved house plants outside for the summer, this is a good time to repot and add fresh soil. Also remember to monitor the soil moisture as plants will dry out faster outside.
• Check hanging baskets daily for water, especially that are exposed to the sun or winds. Plastic containers will dry out slower than those with coconut liners.
• Remove faded flowers from purple coneflower, rudbeckia, phlox, Shasta daisy etc. to encourage a second show.

TOURS AT THE LEARNING GARDEN 10 AM - 11 AM at 49 Mount Carmel Road, Asheville NC 28806 JOIN US for a tour and be lead through the gardens by a master gardener docent as you watch the other gardeners caring for the plants. See beautiful and interesting plants, delicious vegetables, native plants for beauty and pollinator interest. The tours start at 10:00 a.m. and should last approximately an hour.  The tours will begin outside the front door of the Buncombe County Extension Office. No registration required. Also mark your calendar for July 23, August 27, and September 24

FRUIT

• Stay on top of brown rot on peaches and plums, and black rot on grapes. Maintain regular fungicide sprays as a preventative as these diseases cannot be controlled once they have infected the fruit.
• This is a good time to remove excess sucker and water sprout growth from apple trees. Removing the excessively vigorous growth now will allow more of the plant’s energy to go into fruit and desirable growth, and will result in less re-sprouting than winter pruning.
• A healthy strawberry bed can be renovated after harvest. Beds more than 3 or 4 years old are often best removed and replanted in the fall or spring.

GROWING SMALL FRUIT? Check out Chapter 14 of the NC Extension Gardener Handbook on Small Fruits. Be sure to scroll to the end of the chapter to see ALL the resources from NC State that are available.

LAWNS

• Mow frequently enough to remove no more than 1/3 of the grass blade at a time, cool season grasses 3 inches high. Try not to mow when grass is wet to avoid spreading disease.
• Do not fertilize cool season lawns until September.
• Regular rainy weather will produce good conditions for brown patch, a fungus disease. If brown patches begin to occur do not irrigate and do not mow the lawn when wet.

LEARN TO COMPOST Sat, June 21, 10am – 1pm WNC Farmers Market, 570 Brevard Rd, Asheville, NC 28806 There are five different composting methods on display at the site; a single bin unit, a tumbling composter, a wood pallet bin and a classic 3-bin system -- an example of vermiculture is usually present too! Also mark you calendars for July 12, August 9, September 13

THANK YOU  For Helping make the 2025 SPRING FLING PLANT SALE a Success!

Thank you everyone who came and support the Extension Master GardenerSM volunteers, Blue Ridge Rose Society and the Men's Garden Club of Asheville. Our goals were met and many great plant now have new homes!