What grows in low desert Arizona gardens in June? I’ll show you. All of these pictures come from my garden in Mesa, Arizona this month.
We garden year-round in many parts of Arizona, but we can’t grow everything all year. Take a look at what’s growing, and let me know in the comments what’s growing in your garden.
Disclaimer: this post contains affiliate links. See my disclosure policy for more information.
Vegetables in the low desert Arizona garden in June
Birdhouse gourds are growing up the tallest ladder. The ladder is covered in gourds.
Read this article for more information about how to grow winter squash.
Lots of cucumbers coming out of the garden right now. They may begin to get a little bitter in the heat, but I will keep harvesting them through this month.
Melons (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew and Chimayo) are growing and beginning to ripen. I’m looking forward to harvesting the first one soon.
Edamame is growing well and almost ready to harvest. This is my first year growing this type of bean, and we are looking forward to eating the edamame right from the garden.
Read this article for more information about how to grow winter squash.
Juliet tomatoes – Tomato pollen begins to die when temperatures are above 95℉, but fruit that has already set on the plant will ripen.
Start seeds indoors this month for a monsoon planting of tomatoes.
Swiss chard can always be found somewhere growing in my garden. Swiss chard grows well in Arizona, and we love it in many recipes.
Lots of varieties of summer squash ripening in the garden as well. We are harvesting squash daily. For my favorite summer squash varieties to try, read this article.
A common vegetable growing in Arizona gardens in June are peppers.
Purple peppers, green bell peppers, habanero peppers, and Serrano peppers are all going strong in my Arizona garden.
In early March, I trim the peppers that made it through the winter, fertilize them, and add compost around the plant.
The plants reward me with new growth and lots of peppers for the next several months.
Flowers in the low desert Arizona garden in June
Coral Vine – This is one of my favorite vining flowering perennials. It definitely needs a trellis and can be invasive, but keep it in check and you get beautiful pink blooms beginning in late summer in full sun with minimal water. Read this article to learn how to grow Coral Vine.
Rudbekia (black-eyed-Susan) – In February, I sprinkled a large packet of seeds around the yard, and I am being rewarded with blooms everywhere!
Red Salvia – The red salvia blooms nearly year-round and has been growing in this spot for several years. It keeps reseeding itself.
Blue Salvia – Less heat tolerant than red salvia but will bloom through the summer if given afternoon shade and regular water.
Vinca – This heat-loving annual often grows year-round.
- Pinch off flowers when you plant, and again as it grows; this will encourage fuller plants.
- Look for trailing varieties (often available at local nurseries – not big box stores).
Angelonia – A beautiful plant that will bloom until it freezes and doesn’t mind summer heat.
- Look for white, pink and purple varieties.
- Plant early in the season if possible and water well until established.
- Pinch back early blooms for fuller plants.
Sunflowers – So many sunflowers in bloom all around the yard! Many have reseeded themselves from last year. I planted a few seeds this spring as well. Read this article to learn how to grow sunflowers.
Fruit trees in the low desert Arizona garden in June
Peaches – We picked the last of the peaches this week. I have an Earligrande peach, a Florida Prince, and a Desert Gold Peach tree. They all have low chill hours (which means they can be grown here in Arizona) and ripen at different times.
Citrus – We fertilized the citrus (I have 15 different types) at the end of last month, and the fruits on most trees have set and are growing. There will be some fruit drop this month – “June Drop” – as the tree self-thins to what it can support through the summer. Adequate watering this month will be important. Arizona gardens in June are enduring what is typically the driest month of the year.
Pomegranates – Fruits are formed and developing on the vine; we may get another flush of blossoms but there are plenty on the trees. The trick will be to keep the leaf-footed bugs off them. I’ve tried several organic methods and not loved any of them. We will see who wins this year… me or the bugs!
Anna Apple – The fruit is about ready to harvest. We’ve picked a few of the ones that ripened early, and they were delicious.
I’m glad I thinned the apple tree well and the fruit that remains is nice sized. We should have a good harvest this year.
Which Herbs Grow in low desert Arizona Gardens in June?
Sage – In early spring, I trimmed the sage around the yard, and they have filled in nicely. They can be harvested through the summer. The trick will be to not let the roots get soggy in the heat as this will kill the plant. Learn more about how to grow sage in this article.
Parsley – This herb is flowering and the pollinators love it.
Bay Laurel – I planted two of these in the fall and they are sending off lots of new growth. I’m loving the convenience of harvesting a bay leaf as needed. They are beautiful plants as well.
Basil – There are several types of this heat-loving herb growing throughout the garden. Some plants I keep trimmed back and harvest frequently; others I let flower for the pollinators. This article shares how to grow basil.
What to plant in the low desert of Arizona in June
Vegetable Planting:
- Start seeds indoors this month for a monsoon planting of tomatoes and peppers.
- Plant seeds or transplants of Amaranth, Armenian Cucumber, Black-Eyed Peas, Cantaloupe, and Snake Beans
- This is the last month to plant Sweet Potatoes they are planted from Sweet Potato Slips.
Arizona Vegetable Planting Guide helps you learn when to plant vegetables in Arizona, and whether to plant seeds or transplants.
With 50 vegetables listed that grow well in the low desert of Arizona, you are sure to find one to try.
Flower Planting:
Angelonia, Celosia*, Coleus*, Cosmos, Four O’Clock, Globe Amaranth, Lisianthus, Marigold*, Portulaca, Purslane, Sunflowers, Vinca and Zinnia
* = plant through June 15th
Arizona annual flowers planting guide helps you learn when to plant flowers in Arizona, and whether to plant seeds or transplants.
Arizona Herb Planting Guide helps you learn when to plant over 30 different herbs in Arizona, and whether to plant seeds or transplants.
Low Desert Arizona Garden in June To-Do List:
Watering:
- June is often the hardest month on plants. Do not overwater or underwater this month. Both are harmful for plants.
- Check irrigation system and timer. Run system, and inspect all drips and sprinklers for leaks and proper watering.
- As temperatures heat up, annual plants will need more frequent watering. Water to a depth of about 6 inches every 2-3 days; allow top of soil to dry out before watering again.
- Check containers with a moisture meter or make sure top inch or so of soil has dried out before watering.
- Established citrus trees should be watered once every 7-10 days to a depth of 2-3 feet.
- Water established fruit trees once every 3-5 days to a depth of 2-3 feet.
- Grape vines need deep watering every 5 days.
- Wateruseitwisely.com is a helpful resource for landscape watering guidelines.
Pruning and Garden Clean-up:
- Keep an eye out for leaf-footed bugs in all forms. Destroy eggs. Neem oil is effective during the nymph stage. Adult stage bugs must be killed by hand.
- Harvest remaining onions and garlic at the beginning of the month.
- Clear out squash and other plants that have stopped producing or are showing signs of heat stress and disease.
- Don’t prune most plants. Most are in summer dormancy in order to survive. Pruning can expose new parts of a plant to sunlight damage.
- Deadhead annual warm-season flowers such as coreopsis, gaillardia, marigold and cosmos to extend bloom.
- Light pruning of dead branches from trees and shrubs is okay. Delay heavy pruning until later in the fall.
- Minor pruning of citrus is okay; delay heavy pruning until later in the fall.
- Do not prune newly-planted trees or shrubs.
- Pinch back summer-flowering perennials to encourage blooms.
- Prune suckers of tomato plants if desired, and pinch back basil often to keep from flowering.
Fertilizing:
- Don’t fertilize most plants. Most are in summer dormancy in order to survive. Fertilizing can cause stress in plants.
- Fertilize citrus at the beginning of the month if you didn’t do it in May. Water well before and after applying fertilizer. Do not fertilize other fruit trees this month.
- Fertilize summer herbs such as oregano, basil and mint with an organic fertilizer.
Want more information about gardening in Arizona? This blog post shares 7 tips for how to grow a vegetable garden in Arizona.
Angela, I always learn from you, and even though I am not as ambitious as you with my own garden, it inspires me to see what is possible in this desert, with knowledge and dedication. I admire you for all your work and for being willing to share and teach others, in addition. Thank you!
Thank you for your kind words and for commenting! Much appreciated!
Wow, i learned a lot from looking at your post. I never thought that you can grow some of these plants in the Mesa, Arizona. Thanks for sharing this and looking forward for more post.
Thank you so much! Thanks for reading and commenting.
my tomatoe plants leaves all curled up into themselves. it did have lots of flowers, but nothing happened. my cucumber plant had lots of flowers, I did get 4 cucumbers that were very good, then the vine started to shrivel up and the fruit was yellow. my corn plants were doing very well, then they turned yellow, lost all green color and dried up. did I overwater them? I am from CO. this is my first year. so hopefully next year will be better.
Welcome to Arizona! It’s hard to know exactly what happened. Many issues in the garden do go back to watering. The summer sun/heat is often too much for plants as well. Keep trying. Use a planting guide for our area, https://extension.arizona.edu/sites/extension.arizona.edu/files/pubs/az1005.pdf take notes and learn as you go. Best of luck!
I’m so glad that you posted a list of what we can grow for the month of June. I’m in Tucson, and I thought that I couldn’t grow anything else since it is really hot now(better than last year). You gave me hope! (I thought I had to wait next year or fall for some). I will put those seeds on the ground right away. Keep up the good work! Keep planting and sharing.
Thank you for your kind words and encouragement! That means a lot. Happy gardening!
Well done. I have been here 20 years and have had hit and miss with tomato and pepper plants. I have never tried a summer garden. Think I will try since June 1 is tomorrow. Thanks, girl.
Thanks so much. Best of luck with your planting!
Having problems setting fruit with my spring tomatoes. My Fall tomatoes have great yields so I feel like my soil conditions are good. I have been growing tomatoes in NE valley for 25+ years in Scottsdale (Shea/104st area) with great success. We moved out to the desert (Goldfield Ranch in Tonto Natl. forest 4 years ago (elevation 1650′) and have had problems every year with spring toms setting fruit. My soil is hauled in and amended with mulch and horse manure for top 8-10″ with native claylike soil below. I feel like it could be temperature related in that initially I have very cool nights in early march when I plant and then early April we get a heat wave and flowers drop again. I definitely get much larger temp swings than I got back in town and wonder if this is the problem. I put shade cloth on in late April. I also think I may have pollination issues as shown in my zucchinis which grow to 3″ or so and drop off. I have had some success with hand pollinating. I’m guessing my humidity out here is lower than in town as well. I have tried pruning suckers off toms as well since plants are heavy on foliage. This helps some I think but still low yields. Other veggies that I grow do quite well ( sev. varieties of peppers, lettuce, cabbage, kale, carrots, onions, Armenian cukes, celery. fennel even pole limas). I’m from back east (Jersey) and have been gardening for over 60 yrs…for me it is all about tomaotes so if they fail I feel like the whole effort was a loss!
Help if you can
Thanks
Hi Barry, I’m inclined to agree with you on the temperature fluctuations. They may be stunting the plant a bit in the beginning and then shocking them with heat. That early heatwave this year was tough. I’d try keeping them as warm as possible when you plant or holding off a bit later to plant next spring. I wish I had a better answer for you. Sounds like you are doing a lot of things right, but have had bad timing with the weather.
Just visiting for the first time. Printed the link to Calendar for Maricopa County.
Starting “Straw Bale Garden” in my back yard in Tempe.
Sure I will be back to your site. Nicely done.
Thanks so much. I’m glad the information was helpful. Strawbale gardening is a great way to go! Best of luck to you.