Gardening tips, May

Summer is well and truly on its way but be watchful and keep an eye on the weather forecast; the occasional frost can still occur at this time of year.

climbing rose

  • Don’t plant out tender bedding plants until the middle of the month. Be prepared to protect from the elements if you think it might be necessary
  • The soil is beginning to warm up so it’s a good time to apply a general fertiliser. Any of the well-known brands will be fine
  • As the weather continues to warm up slugs and snails become more active; control with slug pellets (pet friendly), or remove by hand
  • Tie in climbing and rambling roses
  • Now is a good time to repair bare patches in established lawns. It’s also a good time to sow new lawns
  • Direct drill (sow) hardy annual seeds into the soil
  • Direct drill vegetable seeds; mix some radish seed in with your other seeds; these will germinate first, revealing where the row of seed is
  • Start watering house plants more frequently

Do you know the difference between a rambling rose and a climbing rose?

Although there are exceptions, rambling roses tend to flower just once but have an enormous impact because of a mass of small flowers. The climbing rose is more upright than a rambling rose, and in general, has larger blooms and continues to flower throughout summer and autumn.

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