1. Control and reduce aphid numbers on vegetables, roses, perennial flowers, shrubs and trees with a hard spray from your garden hose or two applications of insecticidal soap.
2. Plant seeds of bush beans every three weeks for a continuous harvest.
3. Heavy rains encourage slug problems. Check for slugs during rainy periods and hand pick the pests.
4. Watch for and control blackspot and powdery mildew on rose foliage.
5. Keep mower blades sharp and set your mower height at 2-3 inches. Remove no more than one-third of the total height per mowing and mulch to return the nitrogen to the soil.
6. For the sweetest pea harvest, pick regularly before pods become over-mature and peas become starchy.
7. Stake or cage tomatoes and spray them if necessary to prevent disease problems. Call the UConn Home & Garden Education Center (877) 486-6271 if you suspect tomato disease problems.
8. To minimize diseases, water with overhead irrigation early enough in the day to allow the foliage to dry before nightfall. Use soaker hoses instead if possible.
9. White grub preventative control should be applied prior to egg hatch and a target date of June 15^th is recommended although it can be done up to July 15^th.
10. Check apple, cherry and other fruit trees for nests of tent caterpillars. Blast low-lying nests with water to destroy them, or knock them to the ground and destroy them. A spray of Btwill kill emerging caterpillars but is not toxic to beneficial insects, birds, or humans.