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Gardening Calendar
The world is a beautiful place once again. From lush
vegetable gardens, to flowering shrubs, annuals and perennials, to green lawns,
the garden is an active place to be. From planting to pruning, fertilizing to
weeding, there is much to do in the garden in May. Make sure you are walking the
garden regularly now. Insects will begin to pop up from lacebugs on azaleas to
bagworms on junipers. The sooner you catch a problem and control it, the less of
a problem it becomes.
Spring blooming shrubs that need pruning, should be pruned
as soon as possible following bloom. Have a reason to prune before you start.
Know why, how, and when to do the job. Spring flowering plants set their flower
buds at the end of the summer, so we want to allow recovery time after pruning.
The sooner you get that done before the weather gets hot and dry, the better
they will grow. Try to avoid the buzz cut type of pruning. That results in
perfect little balls and boxes in the landscape, but all of your foliage and
flowers tends to be along that cut edge. A softer, thinning type of pruning will
give you prettier results. Cane producing shrubs like forsythia, flowering
quince and bridal wreath spirea should be pruned by removing older canes at the
soil line. Once you are done pruning, or if not pruning, after the plant
finishes flowering, fertilize. For azaleas, use an acidic fertilizer like azalea
food. Other shrubs can handle that too, or just use a complete fertilizer. One
application of fertilizer a year should be plenty for most shrubs. If you are
growing Encore azaleas, a light pruning after the first flush of flowers in the
spring will give you a fuller plant for fall flowering.
Vegetable gardens that were planted in the early spring are
giving a bountiful harvest of peas, lettuce, spinach, greens, and even early
onions. If your onions and lettuce start to bolt - putting up a flower stalk,
their season is over, and you need to harvest and use them. Cutting off the
flower stalk will not result in any more growth. As you harvest the cool season
vegetables replant summer vegetables. There is still plenty of time for
tomatoes, eggplant, squash, cucumbers, and peppers, and it is the perfect time
for the heat loving okra and southern peas. Don't start your pumpkins until next
month, so they get ripe in time for Halloween. Mulch your vegetable gardens to
keep weeds at bay and to keep moisture in. Layer sheets of newspaper and put
some shredded leaves on top. Hoe frequently to keep the weeds from taking over.
Don't use a tiller throughout the season, or you will actually increase your
weed presence. Most weeds are growing from the top ½ inch of soil. If you are
constantly turning the soil to kill the growing weeds, you are actually bringing
up more weed seeds. Cut them off at the soil line and mulch and you should have
less weed problems. Pay attention to water needs. Avoid getting the foliage wet
if possible, and water early in the day so the plants can dry. Most gardens were
fertilized at planting, and now is the time for a supplemental side dress.
This is the season for heat lovers to go outside. From
flowering tropical plants like hibiscus and mandevilla, to houseplants and
caladium bulbs, this is their season. While many started moving these plants
outside or planting in April, they tend to kick into gear in May. If you have
tropical flowering plants that you overwintered from last year, make sure you
have repotted them and cut them back by half. Remember, they bloom on the new
growth, and if you don't encourage new growth, you won't see many flowers.
Caladium bulbs can be planted as dry bulbs now, or plants. There are varieties
for sun and shade, but I typically relegate them to the shade garden. Deep shade
calls for light pink or white foliaged varieties to brighten things up. Dark red
varieties will be showier in the light shade, since they tend to disappear in a
deeply shade site.
It is hard for a gardener to contain themselves at
nurseries these days. New plants are arriving constantly, and we want them all.
Make sure you try some of the new varieties, but don't give up on the old
faithful's either. Pansies and violas are still going strong, but you need to
start planting the summer annuals as well. It is hard to throw away a plant in
full bloom, but you can start interplanting with summer color and let it get
some size before you chunk the winter color. If you haven't tried angelonia -
do! These spiking flowering plants come in pink, white, purple, and mixed
colors. They are stunning performers all summer long. In the realm of foliage
plants, try some of the new coleus - they will keep their color all summer until
frost. If you haven't tried petunias in a while, there are some interesting new
colors to choose from. A totally black flower 'Black Velvet' is now available as
well as a pink and green flowering form 'Pretty Much Picasso.' 'Firecracker'
cuphea has great flowers and gets better the hotter it gets, and try some of the
yellow and orange Fusion impatiens in your shade garden. The great thing about
being a gardener is that there is always something new on the horizon to try.
Have fun with your garden!
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