TIPS FOR BULBS IN MAY:

Pick faded blooms but allow greenery to die off naturally before picking. Braid leaves to keep them tidy. 

Divide over grown winter iris and order later flowering varieties for mid - summer planting if you haven't already done so. 

Continue to feed bulbs after blooms fade. Remember, if you add to much fertilizer to your tulips the colors will run. Tulips prefer a pure, loamy soil. 

The soil around Stargazer Lilies and daffodils should be kept moist and mulched during growing period. Later, throughout the summer a thorough drying will do them good. They will not do as well if you keep the bed watered to suit the needs of other plants. 

To keep deer away from Asiatic Lilies, mix a concoction containing: Hot Peppers, Garlic cloves, liquid soap and water. Spray the lilies with this mixture to fend off deer. 

Many wild daffodils will naturalize or spread. You don't have to do anything. Lift, divide and replant naturalized bulbs if they become overcrowded . 

Watch out for thrips on your Daffodils. Thrips are insects that will cause the leaves and flowers to turn pale silver, then brown and eventually die. If you find an infestation; remove and destroy the infested part and use lace wings soap or green lace wings to eliminate thrips. 





TIPS FOR FLOWERS:

Continue to prune spring flowering shrubs after flowers fade. 

Visit your local Garden Centers for those plants that you were not able to start yourself earlier. 

Harden off summer bedding plants in early May. Do not place outside if there is still risk of frost in colder areas. With this strange weather be cautious. In mild areas plant summer-flowering plants that have already been hardened off. 





TIPS FOR VEGETABLES:

Transplant warm season vegetables outdoors in May. Seeds can also be planted outdoors now too. 

When transplanting leeks (if started earlier indoors), do not pack soil around the base. Just pour water in the hole that the leeks are set into. 

Remember to rotate vegetable crops to help control pests, disease and keep the soil in good condition. 

Sow beet seeds an inch deep. Later you can thin them to one strong plant in each position. 

For faster germination of seeds; mix them with a wall- paper paste in a plastic bag. Then squeeze the mixture out of the bag into small holes in moist soil for planting. 

Plant taller vegetables North of shorter ones to reduse shade problems. 

Using a hoe; pile earth up around your potato plants now. 

Weeds encourage pests and diseases. Keep plants well weeded and re-firm soil around plant if loosened. 

If you sow radish seeds in cucumber and squash beds, you will have less problems with the striped cucumber beetle





GENERAL YARD & GARDEN CARE:

Many gardeners plant useful vegetable gardens OR beautiful fragrant flower gardens. Try combining the two by planting nasturtium and marigold in with your vegetables OR herbs around your flower garden. 

Plant lily-of-the-valley or other flowering bulbs around the trunks of your trees to enhance it's natural beauty. 

Create a colorful border by planting corn with Strawflower instead of building a fence. 




TIPS FOR FRUIT & BERRIES:

Long grass around fruit trees will slow the establishment of young trees. Keep it well trimmed. 

Mulch raspberry and black currant bushes with well rotted manure or compost. Make sure you first water the soil around the area until it is quite moist. 

Remove runners from strawberries for more fruit production; or try the growth method below 

Plant new strawberries on top of old ones for a more productive crop. Allow the runners to cover the beds as thick as they can get. Later in fall cover them with about two or three inches of soil. The following spring you will be surprized at the strong production of foliage. The first year may be less productive than years to come. 







TIPS FOR LAWNS:

If your soil is well prepared, it is still not to late to lay turf or sow lawn seed. 

Feed lawn with high - nitrogen fertilizer from April to Sept. for really green grass. Make sure you use a spreader to ensure fertilizer is spread evenly. Dethatch, edge and weed as needed. 

For a nice fragrance in your lawn try mixing in some sweet vernal grass. This is a pasture grass that grows well in zones 5 - 10. It prefers full sun or partial shade. 

If you have pine trees on or near your lawn, make sure that you rake the needles regularly. Pine needles will kill anything underneath them. They pack so tight that light is unable to get through. This also makes them an excellent mulch and natural weed killer for under trees and shrubs. 

If you wish to use weed killers you should do so now while the grass is growing rapidly. Do not use a weed killer if your soil is too wet, to dry or if you have a young lawn. Do not mow your lawn for at least a week after an application. Never add your cuttings to the compost after a treatment. 

When mowing your lawn make sure you use a mower with a sharp blade. If the blade is dull it will tear the young seedlings from the soil. 

Add gentle curves to your lawn for the appearance of a larger area. Gentle curves are also easier to mow than sharp curves. 


--------------------------------------------------
Thank you for visiting www.gardeningtips.org Gardener's Paradise