Gardening Tips for May
May is one of the most exciting times to be in the garden. Spring has arrived (at long last) and with it flower, scent & beauty in abundance. Get gardening and enjoy the awesome spectacle which is the British spring!
Below are a few ‘To do tips for May’ I suspect many of you have some great tips, please share them with us all by posting them on our Garden Forum. (also a great place to ask those burning questions!)
Greenhouse Gardening
Greenhouses allow the growing season to be extended when your seedlings would otherwise be killed by cold weather conditions.
Now is the time to sow half hardy annuals – Alyssum, Cosmos, French Marigold, Nicotiana, or the heavily scented Stocks.
Vegetables and fruit plants grown in your greenhouse will provide an abundance of food for your kitchen. Choose from Tomatoes and Courgettes to, Lettuce and Cucumber. All do fantastically well in Grow bags.
Melons can also be planted in the greenhouse, but use a deeper pot with plenty of farmyard manure worked in.
Ideal time to sow your Marrow seeds.
Once planted up, it is an idea to keep your hanging baskets in the greenhouse, to allow them to be protected until any frost danger has gone.
You must remember that if the weather becomes too hot, your plants may not survive in the greenhouse. It may be necessary to leave the window and doors open, and maybe even coat the outside of the glass with some form of Paint-on shading, or shade netting.
Grow Your Own
Herbs are not difficult to grow, and can form a very attractive and aromatic addition to your garden or indoor plant displays. Now is the time to sow your herb seeds or buy plants from the wide range Wyevale offer and get a head start on the neighbours!
Herbs grow best in sunny locations, due to many of them originating from the Mediterranean. Think also about how long the plants will last. Perennial herbs will last for years, and include Lavender, Rosemary, Thyme and Mint. Annual herbs will only last for a season, and include Basil, Coriander and Dill.
Once established and growing, you should trim the foliage from your herb plants regularly, to promote new growth.
Mint roots are extremely invasive, and will quickly take over an area of soil. Plant mint in pots, even if then sunk into the ground, to avoid invasion.
Bush and Cane Fruit – check they have adequate supports and give them a high Potash feed.
Cover Carrot sowings with a fine mesh or grow a row of onions alongside, both will throw the Carrot Root Fly of the scent!
Earth up potatoes – covering emerging foliage with soil. This encourages more potatoes to form, stops them going green and protects the plant from late frosts.
Calbresse & Kale can now be sown direct into your veg plot or in containers on the patio. French & runner beans should be sown towards the end of May.
Keep an eye for Black Fly on your Broad Beans. If you spot em squash em! Or spray with a contact insecticide.
Patio Containers and Hanging Baskets
If you have them, you must empty and wash out your old baskets and containers, to remove any traces of any pests or diseases that may be present. The old plant material should be put into your compost pile. Check baskets for maintenance needs, such as new liners or chains.
Refill containers and baskets with a specific container compost, ensuring the right mix of nutrients and drainage.
To avoid compost drying out in your hanging baskets, mix in some Water Retaining Gel or Crystals. These will actively hold onto excess water, releasing it slowly, preventing the compost drying out too quickly.
Start a container by choosing a focal point, such as a Geranium, Fuchsia or similar. Other smaller plants can then be planted around this centrepiece, with trailing plants cascading over the edge. There’s masses of choice, have fun and experiment, there is no right or wrong!
Grow Your own hanging basket – Tumbling Tomato basket, Strawberry basket, hanging basket packed with herbs or even a Radish & Carrot basket!
In The Border
Daffodils – When they have finished flowering give them a boost with a granular feed. You can cut the leaves off but not until you see them beginning to die back.
Sweet Peas – Some of the bests scents in the plant kingdom & an incredible array of colours. Now is the time to plant out against supports (canes, pea sticks, wigwams or obelisks) At the same time sow Sweet Pea seeds next to the plants to give a continuation of flowers right up to the autumn.
Clematis – they like there feet to be cool and shady, place 5-6cm of bark chippings around the base of each plant and they will say thanks with a great show of flowers! As soon as the early flowering Clematis have finished flowering then that is the time to give them a haircut to keep them to the size you want. You can be quite severe with you secateures they will bounce back even stronger!
Hostas are beginning to emerge and the slugs are waiting for them! Make a Hosta happy and give it some protection. Scatter slug pellets around the base of the plant (Don’t put the pellets in piles; cats & dogs are more likely to eat them this way.) A ring of sharp edged gravel around the plants forms a slug barrier. If your Hostas are in containers then Vaseline around the rim of the pot will slow the little critters down!
Roses – A great time to plant container grown roses. David Austin Roses are the Rolls Royce of the rose world, a real scentsation!! With established roses now is the time to start spraying to ensure beautiful foliage all year. Spray once every two to three weeks with Rose Clear.
Prune early flowering shrubs such as Forsythia, or Ribes (Flowering Currant) Prune out the oldest braches only. This encourages the plant to send up new vigorous young shoots but by leaving some of the shoots you are guaranteed a good show of flower next year.
FREE Plants! Lift and divide Primula and Polyanthus. One plant may give you two or three new ones. When replanting remember they prefer a semi shady spot.
Wildlife Gardening
Plant up a wildlife hanging basket of Alyssum and Nasturtiums.
Look out for nests before pruning shrubs or hedges.
Put out nesting materials for birds.
Birds raising young families are hungrier than ever now so make sure you keep putting out that bird food right through the spring.
Nectar Hotels for butterflies – Consider planting plants which will give butterflies food this summer, Buddleia (Butterfly Bush), Lavender, Verbena, Echinacea (Coneflower), or Sedum.
Kids Gardening
It is seed sowing time which is just great fun for kids, giving almost instant results & the WOW factor from a tiny dry looking seed comes this seedling full of life!
Competition often works! Sow seeds now and let battle commence!
Sunflowers – The tallest sunflower or the Sunflower with the fattest face (In store Wyevale are giving away free seeds for this competition.)
Pumpkin – biggest, heaviest, most weird shape. Sow in pots indoors now.
Marrow – The longest, seed sown in pots in the greenhouse or window sill and then transferred outside in early June.
Carrots in pots – sown directly into deep terracotta pots and put on the patio, the longest carrot wins!
Mustard & Cress – The most artistic pattern. Take a large seed tray fill with seed compost. On top make a pattern with fine sand & when you are happy with your picture sow the seeds on top of the sand and cover with a fine layer of compost. As the seeds emerge so does the pattern!
There are lots more ideas, a competition is all that more fun if it is against Mum or Dad or Gran or Granddad!!
Hardy Geraniums
Commonly known as ‘Cranesbills’ are among the most popular of perennial plants. They produce attractive foliage and an abundance of attractive blooms.
The Hardy Geranium will grow in almost any position in the garden, being very tough and adaptable plants. They do not like waterlogged soil however, so this should be avoided.
Cut back hard in the mid-summer, many Hardy Geraniums will produce a second-wave of bushy growth and flowers in the season.
Most varieties of Hardy Geranium will die down to ground level in the autumn, and should have their old foliage removed.
