Jobs around the Garden…
- You can now start mowing you lawn weekly- this will make it a much easier task
- Bedding plants will need to be fed with the warmer weather setting in; they will rapidly soak up the fertiliser in the compost so use an All Purpose Plant Feed. Miracle-Gro Slow Release is also ideal, giving you season long feed for your plants.
- Place supports onto perennials that are likely to start leaning.
- Pests like nice weather – so watch out for slugs, snails and little monsters such as aphids. Keep a bottle of insect repellent nearby.
- Earth up potatoes, and promptly plant any still remaining
- Water early and late to get the most out of your water
- Lift and divide overcrowded clumps of daffodils and other spring-flowering bulbs
Flowers to sow…
- Dill
- Sunflowers
- Scabious
- Zinnias
- Bishops Flower
- Verbena bonariensis
- Nasturtiums
Vegetables to grow…
- Basil
- Carrots
- Courgettes
- Cucumber
- Kohlrabi
- Rocket
- Sprouting Broccoli
- Sweetcorn
Wildlife Gardening in May…
- Keep bird feeders topped up, and avoid large pieces of bird food as this can choke baby birds
- Give your bird bath a good clean and then keep it topped up with fresh water
- Newly arrived migrant birds will appreciate nest boxes, you can also put-up bat boxes
- When working around the garden be careful not to disturb bird nests
- Keep the hedgehog food and water bowls topped up
- You can take part in ‘No Mow May’ and leave that lawn cutting for another month. This is great for wildlife!
- Choose flowers that attract bees and other pollinating insects and leave logs, twigs and rocks laying in a heap to make an ideal wildlife shelter. Or we have Bug Hotels in store which you can simply pop into your garden.
- By May newts are laying their eggs singly on leaves of plants such as brooklime and early frog and toad spawn will now be developing into tadpoles which soon disperse into the water.
- Remove blanket weed by twirling around a rough stick. Skim off floating weeds with a net. Leave weeds on the pond side for 24 hours to allow trapped creatures to return to the water before adding to the compost heap.
