We’re nearly at the end of June already and I’m still waiting for consistently warm weather to arrive. Despite this, my melons and pickling cucumbers are climbing, albeit slowly. My earliest tomatoes, Sun Golds of course, have ripened, the bush beans are flowering and setting fruit, and my corn is way past knee high. The earliest cilantro and arugula have bolted as the second succession is just ready to harvest: this is the reminder to sow another row of each for next month. Like today. Make haste!

The strawberries are slowly coming in, at a much more meager pace than years past. Honeyberries are mostly going straight into the freezer for smoothies, and we are eating our fill of snap peas and now snow peas, sharing them by the pound-full with friends and neighbors.

But this week is a key week for replanting the garden, for preparing for second and third successions of main season crops, and for starting more fall crops so we will have a robust garden in October and beyond.

Direct Seeding Vegetables

My focus for direct seeding is largely on main season crops: beans, corn, arugula, cilantro, beets, carrots, green onions, and more summer squash (that will hopefully escape the squash vine borer).

I may also direct seed some broccoli and cabbages in our cold frame after I — ahem — clean it out. It’s sort of a mess from everything that flowered from my winter sowings.

Quick maturing culinary staples that can continue to be direct seeded:

• Arugula
• Cilantro
• Scallions/green onions
• Bok choy (yes, you can sow this all summer!)

Main season vegetables and herbs to direct seed now include:

• Carrots
• Beets
• Dill
• Corn
• Snap beans (pole or bush)
• Dry beans (I’m sowing bush dry beans in a very loose 3 sisters planting, but for sure last call!)
• Winter squash (I let my seedlings perish so I’m direct seeding some … never tried them this late)

Sowing Indoors

As we rapidly approach the end of June, my indoor seed starting begins its final season. And I am already breathing a sigh of relief. I love reaching this point in the growing season, it’s one of many mental finish lines I cross in summer.

I’ll sow a tray this week, and then one or two more trays in July, mostly focused on lettuce and beets for transplanting in early August.

Right now, I am focused on my main season brassica varieties, not storage cabbage (too late to grow those):

• Broccoli
• Cabbage (red and green)
• Kale (dwarf blue and scarlet)
• Beets
• Fennel
• Heat tolerant lettuces:
  • Coastal Star
  • Concept
  • Jericho

And yes, you could probably direct seed ALL of this, but as you intimately know, I have an entrenched relationship with indoor seed starting.

What I’m Transplanting

This week, I’m transplanting my most recent 2 trays:

• Basil (2nd succession)
• Zinnia (more zinnia!)
• Cosmos (more of those too!)
• Watermelon
• Celery (for fall)

Transplanting late next week:

• Cauliflower
• Storage Cabbage
• Romanesco broccoli
• Belstar broccoli

Keep sowing with curiosity and reverence for the seasons that lie ahead.