May
Top Garden Jobs
In the flower garden… Spring bulbs will be coming to an end throughout May and in all honesty looking a bit unsightly! However, resist the temptation to tidy and chop their leaves off. Instead, allow their foliage to die back naturally and give clumps a good liquid feed. The more energy they can pull down into their bulbs the better display they’ll provide next year.
If you’re considering lifting and moving any, pop a plant marker in so you remember where they are and can lift and relocate them in the autumn.
In the kitchen garden… it’s full steam ahead now the days are warming up! Potato shoots will be appearing, so keep earthing them up for a good yield this season. Pop in plant supports nice and early now for your pea’s, runners and broad beans. It’s not to late to get sowing!
In the plant house… keep a close eye out for signs of pests such as Aphids. Early detection and prevention are easier than dealing with an infestation.
In the garden shed… now is a great time to plant up summer hanging baskets and patio pots. Garden centres will be filling up with bedding plants. Do keep an eye on the weather man though and give newly potted baskets protection from any late frosts. Don't forget its No Mow May a campaign by Plantlife to find out just how many wildflowers are in your lawns. At the end of the month you can take part in the “Every Flower Counts” survey.
For the wildlife… this is the month war is declared on slugs and snails as they come out in force to do their worst! Surprisingly though, out of the 40 known species it is only a minority that cause us gardener’s despair as they nibble their way through our kitchen and flower gardens. Most are simply busy going about their business decomposing waste material for us. There are endless ways to rid your garden of them though whether naturally…or not so. A big win is to encourage more birds, frogs and hedgehogs into the garden who will help keep slug and snail numbers down. Alternatively you can use my super useful and decorative Slug Trap!