May 2007 - Mild Weather Magic

May 2007 - Mild Weather Magic
by Bob Johnson

May - and things in the garden are really growing now, especially with the mild weather we have been having. gardencentreonline.com monthly gardening article by professional gardener, Bob Johnson. Gardening in the Cotswolds for the rich and famous for the last 15 years.

Lawns If you applied a weed and fed last month then you should really notice a difference by now. The grass should look greener and the weeds should be dying. If you used one with a moss killer in it then the moss should also be dying. Don't worry if you didn't get a chance to do it last month as you can still do it, just make sure that it is done when rain is forecast so that it gets washed in. If you have things like snowdrops or crocuses in your lawn they can be mown off now as they will have died back, Daffodils can be cut off later in the month once they have also died back.

Greenhouse As bush Fuchsias grow pinch out the growing tips after 3 sets of leaves have formed. When each of these new shoots have developed 3 sets of leaves, pinch out again as this will produce a nice bushy plant. With trailing types pinch out the leading shoot when it has reached it's desired length, then pinch out the tips of the side shoots when they have 3 sets of leaves.Geraniums can have the tips pinched out occassionally to increase the bushiness of the plant. Tomatoes should be potted up now, into their final pots or grow bags.If you want hanging baskets or pots for your garden now is the time to plant them up, so that when they go out at the end of the month they will have already made some growth and therefore look fuller when they are put in their garden position.

Vegetable Garden Continue to plant your salad crops so that you get a continuous supply. I find that planting short rows of lettuce about 10 days apart will ensure that you have a continuous supply of lettuce all season, with sufficient crop readily on hand which in turn also minimises the chances of wasted crop.Sow french and Runner Beans directly into the seed bed, but if there are late frost then the beans must be covered with horticultural fleece.Sweetcorn is best sown in blocks, with 2 seeds per hole. This ensures that the weakest seedling can be pulled out, leaving the stronger healthier plant in its place.Brussels Sprouts can now be transpalnted into their final place, and you can plant radishes or gem lettuce in between them as they will take time to grow.Earth up potatoes (which is pulling up the soil round the shoots, along the rows of potatoes) when the shoots are 9 inches high to stop the potatoes going green.Harvest spears from established asparagus plants for 6-8 weeks. Do not harvest spears from crowns which are less than 2 years old.

Borders This month is just a case of keeping them tidy really. Continue staking any plants as needed and keep them weeded.If the weather is dry, keep any plants that were put in last month or recently, well watered - preferably in the evening when the sun has gone off them.Remove any suckers from lilac trees.Ensure that you keep an eye on slugs and if needed put down slug pellets, or if you don't like using this chemical option there are now different types of slug traps on the market.Keep Roses sprayed against greenfly - using a commercial greenfly pesticide.

Pruning There isn't much pruning to do this month - it's more to do with maintenance of climber growth and tying inKeep encouraging clematis shoots to grow up their support (trellis or wire) as the continue to grow and climb.Tie in any long shoots on climbing Roses

Birds As there isn't much pruning this month or cutting of hedges this helps the birds because they have built or are inthe process of building their nests now so the least disruption caused by these activities the better. If you are going to cut hedges look and see if you can see any nests inside and if there are any delaying the cutting until the nest is vacated.If you have a bird water bath ensure that it is continually topped up so that the birds can have a wash and a drink - the sun evaporates a lot of it but also the birds have a great time in it - I had 2 starlings in mine the other morning and they were having a wonderful bath and the blue tit perched on the side was getting a free shower!