Gardening Notes

May

• Maintain a programme of weeding. 
• Plant perennials for maximum effect.
• Note gaps to be filled with bulbs for next year.
• Control algae on ponds.
• Plant up pots for summer colour.
• Fill hanging baskets.
• Stake tall growing perennials.
• Sow hardy biennial seeds.
• Plant out half hardy annuals.
• Complete summer bedding.
• Continue sowing of vegetable seeds.
• Trim ornamental hedges.
• Keep pests and diseases under control. Spray against greenfly and rose blackspot. Renew slug pellets if you use them.
• Place straw around the base of strawberry plants just before the flowers start to open.
• Hang codling-moth traps in apple trees .
• Look out for the first greenfly on the new shoots of roses and be ready to deal with them. Get the old finger-and-thumb to work before they proliferate.
• Glorious pink or white Clematis montana plants are coming to an end. Even though they may already be full of young shoots, cut back wall-trained specimens to a well-spaced framework of younger wood and fresh shoots. Those meant to ramble casually can just be thinned out every two or three years.
• Keep your hand-fork and hoe busy on weed seedlings; this is the big month for them. Be ready to spot and spare seedling garden plants.
• Remove persistent dandelion weeds from the lawn.
• Weeds, weeds, weeds! Remove hairy bitter cress seedlings before the seed can ripen and fire off into the air. Nothing is more depressing than having them explode as your hand moves in for the kill – it’s too late then.
• Check for seedlings (bitter cress, dandelions, oxalis and so on) growing in the compost of newly bought plants, and clean them up thoroughly before you plant.
• Spread fresh straw around the base of strawberry plants, as this raises the developing fruits off the ground and prevents rots and moulds.
• Remove suckers that are emerging on rose bushes.