May 2014 Postcard From The Hedge

Okay, so I promised a monthly to-do list for the garden, and here - courtesy of Sloat Nursery (and please shop there - they are smart, helpful and funny!)  is your May to-do list.  Check out their advice, sign up for their newsletter - sign up for Orchard's newsletter too.  

Try something new - tomatoes among the petunias, basil and parsley edging a flower bed.  Sage by the front door (and google the folklore about that).  

Then go out and garden - there's a lot to do, and it's the perfect day for it - it's today.  Doesn't get any better than that.

May

Plant

􏰀 Plant annuals like petunias, marigolds, begonias, lobelia, and coleus. Re-seed radishes, carrots and beets.
􏰀 Plant late summer edibles such as pumpkins, squash, sunflowers and melons. 􏰀 Select garden-ready

blooming perennials.

Fertilize

􏰀 Fertilize rhododendrons, azaleas and camellias with E.B. Stone Organics Azalea, Camellia & Gardenia Food.
􏰀 Give vegetables a boost with E.B. Stone Organics Tomato and Vegetable Food.
􏰀 Use a time-release fertilizer such as Osmocote for your container plants.

Prune/Maintain

􏰀 Prune spring-flowering shrubs after bloom is past.
􏰀 Mulch vegetable and flower beds with Sloat Forest Mulch Plus to control weeds and conserve moisture.

􏰀 Freshen up containers and replace spent annuals with colorful 4-inch perennials such as verbena, calibrachoa, bacopa and ipomoea.

􏰀 Release ladybugs and other beneficial insects to help control aphids, mites, white- flies, and other garden pests.

June

Plant

􏰀 Warm season annuals are here! Plant zinnia, salvias, cosmos, lisianthus and portulaca.
􏰀 Plant herbs for use in the kitchen. Re-seed or transplant salad greens, green beans and kales.

Fertilize

􏰀 Your spring plantings are getting hungry. Feed them with all-purpose fertilizers such as E.B. Stone Organics and Maxsea. 􏰀 Feed your lawn with Nature’s Green Lawn Food.

Prune/Maintain

􏰀 Continue to deadhead roses, shrubs and other flowers with Felco pruners to encourage new blooms; for smaller jobs, such as grooming your container creations, use Fiskars Micro Tip Snips.

􏰀 Mulch shrubs and beds to conserve moisture.Try GreenAll Microbark for its beauty and utility.
􏰀 Make sure vegetables are supported with cages, stakes, or trellises.

􏰀 Check early-bearing fruit trees for heavily laden branches.Thin fruits now to increase their size and prevent branches from breaking. Harvest vegetables as they ripen so plants continue producing.