As we clear the fickle weather of early spring and enter the more consistent, if damp, weather of May gardening can pick up a gear. Whilst the risk of frost is fading into the rear-view mirror as May is often a rather soggy month fresh perils await!
Slugs love the cool, damp conditions and the temperatures can still drop to the relatively chilly side so it’s best to still keep any delicate, or delicious, plants well protected.lugs love the cool, damp conditions and the temperatures can still drop to the relatively chilly side so it’s best to still keep any delicate, or delicious, plants well protected.
The
more robust ornamental plants such as daffodils will have already
braved the cold in April and put on a beautiful display. As these plants
go to seed it is the perfect time to dead-head them and tidy up outdoor
beds. Weeds are quick off the mark and will be growing vigorously at
this time of year so a sunny day in May is the ideal time to keep them
in check.
If
you are growing vegetables, hardier crops such as brassicas and
beetroot will be fine if they have already been seed sown and if not,
its not too late to do so in May. Just make sure to keep the weeds under
control and protect the seedlings with some fleece or mesh if possible
to keep pigeons at bay. Root vegetables like potatoes can also be
planted and if already in the ground and sprouting, earth up around the
leaves to keep the tubers safely out of harms way of cooler
temperatures. May is also the time to start off more delicate vegetable
crops indoors such as runner or French beans and summer or winter
squash. Once these have grown to 15cm or so in height it is best to
‘harden them off’, leaving them outside during the day for a couple of
days, whilst still bringing them in at night, to get them acclimatised
to outside conditions before planting them out permanently outside. If
this is too much faff, fear not, waiting until June to plant them
outside should substantially reduce any risk of cold shock for these
plants.
For
those living in apartments though there is of course less worry about
plants getting too chilly, this can be the perfect time to be moving
your sun loving house plants such as aloe vera moved to spots that get
the most light as the days get longer, or tucking away any delicate
shade loving ones such as ferns. You can also grow some tasty edibles
such as herbs or chillis, or for the adventurous, why not try a bush
variety of French beans. As this species is self-fertile and does not
need pollinators they will merrily fruit away in your window whether or
not you happen to have a handy house bee on hand.
In
the next post we will look at what to do in the garden in the
height of summer and we start to reward the fruits of our labours, in
the form of tasty crops sown in spring and enjoying ornamental plants
in full summer splendour. Until then, as always, happy gardening!
