As bulbs fade and herbaceous borders grow in leaps and bounds, it is now clear that summer is approaching.
Sowing and planting out bedding can begin, depending on regional weather variations, and you can take softwood cuttings.
It’s also time to get back into the lawn mowing regime, as the lawn will be loving the warmer temperatures this month brings.
Ten jobs for May
1. Watch out for late frosts. Protect tender plants
2. Earth up potatoes, and promptly plant any still remaining
3. Plant out summer bedding at the end of the month (except in cold areas)
4. Collect rainwater and investigate ways to recycle water for irrigation
5. Regularly hoe off weeds
6. Open greenhouse vents and doors on warm days
7. Mow lawns weekly
8. Check for nesting birds before clipping hedges
9. Lift and divide overcrowded clumps of daffodils and other spring-flowering bulbs
10. Watch out for
viburnum beetle and lily beetle grubs
