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The Southern Lifestyle - living abundantly throughout the seasons.

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.

Ecc. 3:1

The Southern Lifestyle - living abundantly throughout the seasons.

To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven.

Ecc. 3:1

In the Yard

The old saying goes ‘April showers bring May flowers.’ Even though we didn’t have a lot of April showers, that hasn’t stopped the May flowers from coming on strong. Frost season has passed here in Middle Tennessee, so it’s full speed ahead with planting! Here are some timely May gardening tips from HGTV.

By month’s end, warm-season vegetables should be in the ground in all but the northern-most regions. This includes peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, squash, corn, cucumbers, okra, black-eyed peas and melons. You can direct sow seeds into the garden, or use transplants. Once soil is warm, seeds quickly catch up with transplants.

Roses have big appetites and need feeding to fuel their flower display. In northerly areas where new growth is just unfurling, top-dress beds with a slow-release fertilizer, scratching it gently into soil, or add a 2- to 3-inch-thick layer of compost. Follow label instructions for whatever plant food you’re using. In warm-region gardens, plan to feed roses again by month’s end if you’re using a slow-release fertilizer. With liquid rose fertilizer, you’ll need to apply every two weeks until August. Some rose fertilizers include a pesticide to help defeat common rose pests like Japanese beetles. Read the label carefully, because these products often harm beneficial insects and pollinators.

One of the best tools you can use in your garden is mulch. It moderates soil temperatures, slows water evaporation from soil and helps suppress weeds. Wait until soil has warmed before adding mulch, or you risk slowing plant growth. When using shredded bark, a 2-inch-thick layer will do the trick in most areas. In warmest zones where mulch decomposes quickly, a 3-inch layer is helpful.

Let’s face it; buying new plants can be expensive. Here are a couple of ways to save some money without sacrificing a beautiful garden:

Plant hydrangeas in containers instead of putting them in the ground right away. That lets you buy smaller, less expensive plants that grow to a larger size through the growing season. Six weeks before the first fall frost, transplant hydrangeas into their forever home in the landscape. You can do this with other flowering shrubs, as well.

Another little trick I learned from a friend is how to turn one fern into two! When you bring your newly purchased fern home, carefully remove it from the pot that its in. If it is a hanging pot, you can probably unclip the plastic ‘arms’ from the pot, making the fern easier to remove. Lay the fern on its side, and use a sharp knife to cut the fern in two, from top to bottom. Pull off any broken or cut fronds, and repot the halves, putting each in its own container, filling in the extra space with potting soil. The fern will spread and fill out so that you can’t tell it was ever cut. Sometimes I tuck in a few annuals when I’m repotting the ferns to add a little color.

Many spring flowers are self-sowing. That means if you let them make seed, you’ll get a head-start on next year’s spring show. Lupines, bachelor’s buttons, dame’s rocket, larkspur, poppies and dianthus are all spring-flowering beauties that happily self-sow and return to your garden year after year.

The Southern Lifestyle - living abundantly throughout the seasons.

The Southern Lifestyle - living abundantly throughout the seasons.

In the Yard

May Weather Lore

Click on "Recipes" tab above to see this issue's offerings.

The Southern Lifestyle - living abundantly throughout the seasons.

The Southern Lifestyle - living abundantly throughout the seasons.

In the Yard

May Weather Lore

Click on "Recipes" tab above to see this issue's offerings.

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