May brings the conclusion of pine pollen as well as the unofficial start of summer with all the long Memorial Day weekend. Allow the prime gardening period begin. Here is what you can do from the Southeast garden.
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The Carter Rohrer Co..
Admire blooming trees and shrubs. May is blossom period for southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora). These flowers give so much, and we will need to do so little to them in return. I love to pluck a magnolia blossom and float it in a bowl of water near where I read or enjoy the garden at the end of the day. It lasts but a day, but what a day it’s.
The Endless Summer hydrangea is the first hydrangea to blossom new and old expansion, together with the ability to rebloom all summer long. I planted my Endless Summer in 2005. To encourage reblooming, cut the blossoms for drying or to put in vases to get a brand new arrangement. This may also encourage the plant to set new buds.
Prune rhododendrons and azaleas right after flowering.
The Todd Group
Enjoy abundant rose blossoms. Roses are in full swing right now. Let the roses flesh out; prune less in May so that they grow taller. This is good advice for your two or three cuttings. Then you are able to prune at will, remembering to cut the subsequent five leaflets at a angle.
Expert Pruning Secrets for Exquisite Roses
Roses are heavy feeders — in terms of both food and water. Fertilize once a month and then provide each rose approximately 5 gallons of water each week (or about 1 inch per week). Water in the morning, at the base of the plant to help discourage black spot.
The New York Botanical Garden
Cherish blooming iris. Oh, the irises are blooming their heads off. As soon as they bloom, cut the flower stalks to clean up the plant. Recently I cut for a buddy. She took a whiff and realized, for the first time, that bearded irises have a beautiful scent — making them pleasurable indoors too.
Cut the flower stalks of daffodils. Try to dismiss the leaves because the plants naturally die back.
Troy Rhone Garden Design
Plant annuals. With frosts behind us, you are able to plant annuals with jealousy. Visit public gardens to see the number available for planting in our region. The JC Raulston Arboretum is a All-American Selection (AAS) display backyard, exhibiting the most recent selection winners.
Direct sow zinnia seed at periods to have cut flowers through frost.
Gardening with Confidence®
Plant tender summer bulbs. It’s now safe to transplant the amaryllis you grew during the winter. It will not likely blossom again this year but should do this next year.
Now that the soil has warmed (be sure it’s at 60 degrees Fahrenheit), plant caladium bulbs or caladiums potted and already in foliage. They like it warm and may be ruined by cool weather, but not just a frost. They are also large collars, so you will want to water and fertilize them consistently during the growing season.
In fact, any tender summertime bulb, such as cannas, dahlias, ginger lilies and tuberoses, can be planted now.
Earth Mama Landscape Design
Grow edibles. With all the last frost of the season, it is now time to plant berries, basil, peppers, cucumbers and other tender annuals.
Gardening with Confidence®
Plant an herb garden. If not for you, then to the backyard friends. Black Tiger Swallowtail butterfly larvae love parsley and fennel. Let those green worms consume all of it.
May within my backyard is peak lavender blossom time. Every May I’m reminded of why I develop lavender; it may appear ratty several months of this year. When it flowers, cut back and form it.
Gardening with Confidence®
Discover distinct wisteria. May isn’t the ideal time for planting perennials, but they’re frequently accessible. If your plan is to plant, be prepared to pamper them nicely. Perennials need more watering to help them get established.
Seeing Chinese wisteria from the wild brings a sense of wonder. Yes, the color and flowers cascading down from the trees are beautiful, but they aren’t assumed to be there. Think twice as planting one.
Rather, think about the rich purple flowers of American wisteria (Wisteria frutescens ‘Amethyst Falls’); it blooms a little later the Chinese species.
Gardening with Confidence®
Insert a container garden. Every home area has room for container gardens. Locate some fabulous pots and fill them with anything you fancy. Know the amount of sunlight you get and if.
It matters when you choose your plants. Containers are inclined to dry out quicker, so container gardens will need to be watered more often. This water tends to cause nutrients to leach out, so plants will benefit in the application of a quick-release fertilizer.
Gardening with Confidence®
Top-dress your garden beds with mulch. Keep your gardens trendy, less thirsty and reduce the number of weeds. I can write volumes about the benefits of mulch. I believe in the ability of mulch.
For my roses, I use mini nuggets, but for my continuing gardens, I used composted leaf mulch. Picking up a load of mulch informs me how important it’s to be sure lawn waste is separated from trash. Yard waste not only is good stuff once it’s composted, but also the conservation practice is in everone’s best interest.
Fertilize sustainably. To encourage flowering, use a fertilizer low in nitrogen and high in calcium.
Fertilizer’s three chief components are nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, or NPK.
10-10-10 signifies there’s an equal ratio N, P and K. Hydrangeas like a low N and a high P; hence a blend of 10-40-10 are ideal.My general rule of thumb to remember what the numbers mean would be to start with the first number and apply from the cover of the plant to the bottom. As such, N is for its green, P is to get the blossom and K is to get the root or up and down and all around.
To refresh your comprehension of pH, it refers to the acidity of the soil and can be quantified by the amount of hydrogen ions within the soil. It’s a logarithmic scale based on the ability of 10. As such, a pH of 6 is 10 times more acidic than pH of 7. Thus, just a little change in pH may make a big difference.
A pH of 7 is neutral. A pH lower compared to 7 is acidic. A ph higher than 7 is alkaline. Most plants like a pH between 6.5 and 7. Hydrangeas like it more acidic than most plants.
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