According to the latest weather forecasts, the summer of 2023 will be marked by high temperatures. Temperatures will nevertheless skyrocket from the month of June, which promises to be particularly hot. This is bad news for our green spaces which, having just emerged from the last frosts and the Ice Saints, will now have to suffer a severe drought. The month of June is also a time when the gardener is very active in the garden, but beware of harmful gardening errors in the event of high temperatures! Indeed, as we will see, weeding work must be carried out with great care. While some weeds risk suffocating and dealing the final blow to the garden as soon as they go to seed, other weeds can protect it.
Here are the weeds that you should leave in peace in June for a quieter summer for your plantations!
Which weeds should not be pulled in June and why?
As their nickname suggests, weeds can sometimes be a real plague among plants in the garden or vegetable patch. Some are indeed invasive and can then compete with surrounding plantations. The latter risk suffocating, and lack water and nutrients for healthy growth. However, not all of these plants are in the same boat. Indeed, some allow form a protective mat on the ground for prevent water evaporation during periods of heat wave. These beneficial ground cover species will also create a shade that will protect the earth from the pangs of a scorching sun by providing a natural mulch.
These useful plants that should not be uprooted to help your green spaces pass a hot summer without a hitch include clover, plantain, nettle, lamb’s quarters and chickweed. All these plants will mulch the soil for your plants and lawn once the extreme heat has settled in. In addition, some of them have medicinal uses and have multiple uses in the garden if you pick up a few sprigs (nettle and plantain in particular). So many good reasons not to eliminate them completely!
Weeds that you can remove
Not all weeds are welcome in the garden. Far from protecting the garden, some indeed remain very invasive And dangerous for your plantations, especially when going to seed. You can therefore continue weeding quackgrass, wood sorrel, horsetail, figwort and buttercup (or creeping buttercup). As for bindweed, also affected by this need, you can find effective elimination tips here. We also shared chemical-free weeding techniques to help you weed out targeted unwanted plants.
In June, the warm weather will be conducive to weeding weeds. However, beware of overzealousness, because some « bad » weeds are very useful and could even save your garden this summer! In addition, it is advisable to leave part of the garden fallow for the benefit of auxiliary insects or pollinators and biodiversity.
