May Gardening Tasks

May has finally come around the corner and along with it comes special tasks to be done in the garden. Out of no where, trees are full of wonderful green leaves, flowers have sprung and the grass needs to be tended to almost weekly. Here are some suggestions to get started on during the May months to make sure the garden does not take control right before your eyes.

1. Continue to caring for those seedlings, weeding, and trimming of bushes and trees.

2. Plant warmer weather bushes such as Azaleas and hydrangeas shrubs. In addition, plant annuals at this time. Go ahead, treat yourself to a new plant this season and add to the garden. This is the hottest season to purchase plants though, so get out there early and purchase the new addition.

3. Test the soil for pH levels. This can be done by purchasing a simple test at a gardening center or local Agricultural Extension Office.

4. Take a walk through in the garden to look for overcrowding. Overcrowding is seen when there are too many plants in one location. When there is overcrowding, transplanting may need to be done to assure a high level of health in the plants available. Trimming may also be done at this time for those unruly shrub branches that have taken away from the preferred shape.

5. Check edging in the garden path ways. If any edging has been broken by the winter months, replace it before the gardens growth increases.

6. Deadhead (cut off) spring blooming bulbs to make sure that next year it will bloom again. Leave the leaves alone though until they are yellowish.

7. Give a good feeding to everything in the garden to assure success in the blooming stage. Good supplement food can be purchase at most gardening centers and some stores around the nation. Make sure to feed not only plants but also shrubs and trees.

8. Add mulch to the entire garden on top of last years' mulch. If the mulch is over three years old though, it is best to remove all the mulch and re-mulch. Mulch that is over three years in age can create mold underneath and will not work as properly as it has been created to do.

9. Stake all tall perennials to assure they do not fall over while blooming.