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Back when I was in high school, our English teacher, Mrs. Kohman, required us to memorize the lovely opening of a poem by James Russell Lovell, an old-timey, sentimental kind of poet:
What is so rare as a day in June?
Then, if ever, come perfect days;
then Heaven tries earth if it be in tune,
and over it softly her warm ear lays;
Sitting outside in my backyard yesterday morning, drinking coffee and reading the paper, it came to mind once again. A beautiful June day, just beginning. Perfection.
Forget that I was in my bathrobe and dismaying my neighbors by driving down property values. This is what we gardeners live for. Those rare, happy moments when there's no cold or heat, no bugs or rain--just a gorgeous day when we can spend time in a little corner of paradise that we made all ourselves.
Happy, Happy Gardening!
Veronica Lorson Fowler
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Keep 'Em Blooming
 Ever wonder why plants are so packed with flowers when we buy them at the nursery? It's because the growers have given them just the right diet to make sure they bloom their little hearts out.
And you can do the same. Feed annuals that flower heavily, such as impatiens, marigolds, petunias, begonias, and more, regularly with a fertilizer designed specifically to stimulate flowering (rather than leafy growth or root development.) You'll find different types like the Schultz's Bloom Plus shown here or Miracle-Gro's Bloom Booster.
As always, follow package directions exactly!
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Plant of the Week: Crambe
 I love my crambe cordifolia, which goes by the really unattractive common name of colewort. (So unfortunate--like naming a beautiful woman Brunhilda.)
The leaves look kind of like a small rhubarb plant, but then in June, as you can see, it sends up this giant 4-foot stalk that explodes into tiny white flowers, like baby's breath on steroids. It makes the whole garden look romantically beautiful.
After a couple of weeks, the flowers fade and I cut down the stalks. The leaves remain attractive and tidy for the rest of the season.
In Iowa, it does best in full sun. And it's very low-maintenance. Rabbits and deer don't seem to care for it, and I haven't experienced any disease or pest problems. It doesn't get much easier than that!
Click here for more recommended perennials for Iowa.
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Bunnies Back Off!
It's the small, tender new plants that rabbits like best. So if you protect some of your newer plantings just for two or three weeks until they get a bit larger (and tougher), the rabbits will then leave them alone.
A classic way to do this is to make a cylinder of chicken wire and fit it over the plant. It allows in plenty of sun and air and can be left indefinitely. But if I need quick, even-easier protection for just a matter of days from rabbits, I just cut the bottom out of a large black plastic pot and sink it into the ground around the plant for temporary protection.
Push in some long sticks or a stake to keep the pot in place even when the wind kicks up.
Click here for more tips in dealing with rabbits
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Monthly To-Do
 Plant now seeds of squash, cucumbers, corn, beans, and other seeds that need warmer soil (usually 2 weeks past the last average frost date).
Go ahead and buy plants on clearance, but buy only those plants that look healthy. Avoid runty, dried out, or otherwise tired-looking plants. They're unlikely to rally.
Keep your lawn looking its best by checking out our Lawn Care Schedule for Iowa.
Weed, weed, weed! Get them now while they're small and prevent big problems later. Click here for tips on how to wipe out max weeds in minimum time.
Deadhead flowers on annuals, perennials, and some shrubs. It keeps your garden more attractive and in many cases, it will encourage more flowers longer.
Continue to plant container-grown or balled-and-burlapped trees, shrubs, and roses now. However, avoid planting bare-root roses and other bare-root plants. This late in the year, they'll struggle to get established and may well die.
Time to practice tough love. If a tree or shrub is still struggling with winter damage or overall sickness, with significant amounts of dead wood, it's almost certainly time to dig it up or cut it down.
Remove the browning foliage of tulips and daffodils once it pulls away easily. Until then, the plant is using it to rejuvenate for next year.
Pinch mum buds until the 4th of July. This helps them produce larger, bigger flowers on stronger stems.
Harvest early and often for the most tender, sweetest produce and to keep plants producing well. Pick zucchini, for example, with the yellow flower still attached.
Check out the bulb catalogs and on-line sources. Ordering now assures the type and quantity you want this fall, when supplies run low.
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Editor's Choice
Garden Events
Saturday, June 21
Polk County Master Gardeners Tour
Des Moines
9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Treat yourself to a day of visiting eight private gardens in the Drake, Ingersoll Park, Linden Heights, Waterbury and Westwood neighborhoods. Tickets $15. Click here for more details.
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More from "What Is So Rare As a Day in June" by the flowery Mr. Lowell:
Joy comes; grief goes, we know not how;
Everything is happy now,
Everything is upward striving,
'Tis as easy now for the heart to be true
As for grass to be green or skies to be blue
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