Things to do in May

Divide most perennials. Most perennials benefit from division every 3 years. Contact our Office for fact sheets on how to divide perennials. You can also learn how to divide perennials at a Master Gardener perennial swap. The Keene swap is June 3 at the pavilion below the community center. Westport is May 20 and Lake Placid is May 27.

When spring cleaning, consider using environmentally friendly alternative cleaning products.

Harden off your plants a couple of weeks before your planned transplant date. Expose the  seedlings to the sun, wind, and temperature of the great outdoors, in increasing amounts. Transplant your seedlings to the garden on an overcast day to ease the shock of transition. If buying transplants, bigger is not better, loosen the roots, give them a haircut. For more information, click here for our "Starting Seeds at Home" fact sheet

Raise your lawn mower to cut your grass 3 inches high. Don’t fertilize now.

Remove the faded flowers from spring flowering bulbs, but do NOT cut off the leaves.

Add at least a 2 inch layer of mulch to all your gardens. Lay down soaker hoses

Take a look at your compost bin to see if you have any finished compost that can be spread over perennials as mulch or mix a layer into a new planting bed for flowers or vegetables. Finished compost looks like crumbly soil. You can’t see what you put into it.

Repeated applications of organic matter and compost make the foundation of good plant nutrition, but you may find you need to give them a little boost, especially if the temperatures have been cold. If plants look pale, give them a drink of water soluble fertilizer.          

Fluff up bark mulch around trees and shrubs. You might not need to add more, 2-3” deep is plenty. Plant trees and shrubs but don’t fertilize the first year.

Prune roses. Remove all dead and diseased canes.

Plant cold hardy seeds directly in the garden as soon as possible. Spinach, peas, and lettuce can take a frost and don’t like the summer heat. Be ruthless about thinning. Plant annuals late in the month (except pansies, snap dragons, and a few frost tolerant ones)

Some good frost protection for tender plants: cardboard boxes, old sheets or blankets. Make sure They are propped up so they don’t crush the young plants.

If you planted winter rye as a cover crop last fall, mow it first, then turn it under. Wait at least a week to plant in this area to give the rye a chance to break down.

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