Seasonal Planting Tips
May is the month when everything starts happening on our plots
Keep an eye on the weather forecast – the severe drop in temperature over the last couple of days will have damaged a lot of tender plants planted out during the unseasonably hot weather. If you have lost plants in the recent cold snap just replant seeds – they will soon catch up.
When the soil is warm you can really start planting seeds directly into the earth: beetroot, kale, beans, peas, rocket, radish, chard, spinach, lettuce and salads, carrot, spring onions and much more.
If you have been growing tender plants inside from seed, such as tomatoes, courgettes, chillis, peppers and aubergine, make sure you harden them off before planting them out. James Wong recommends toughening up tender plants up by stroking them gently – as you would a cat – and spraying them with soluble aspirin https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/may/10/hardening-off-seedlings-the-easy-way!
It’s now too late to plant these seeds which require a long growing season, so if you haven’t got these already growing, buy them online or in garden centres if rumoured lockdown regulations allow them to open.
Young plants are very vulnerable to hungry slugs and snails, so be patient and wait until they are a bit tougher before planting out. Consider using coffee grounds, beer traps, broken egg shells, nematodes, cut off plastic bottles or organic wool pellets to protect plants. Collecting by hand on damp mornings and evenings is the best method – what you do with them then is up to you. Digging a pond to encourage hungry frogs and toads will help too.
Earth up potatoes so they don’t turn green when exposed to the light.
Put up supports for runner beans and peas.
Support broad beans with strong twine strung between canes to support heavily-laden plants, and prepare something similar tomatoes, cucumbers and climbing squash before they get too big.
Net brassicas, peas, strawberries, currant and gooseberry bushes to protect them from hungry birds.
Thin out seedlings to give them enough room and light to grow. Water regularly with a fine rose.
Pinch out the top shoots of broad bean to discourage blackfly.
Thin out crowded raspberry canes to allow sunshine and air to penetrate.
Make your own organic plant food with nettles and comfrey: https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/maintain-the-garden/how-to-make-nettle-and-comfrey-feed/
Weed as often as you can now – if you let weeds run away from you now it’ll be hard to catch up later. Remember Whetstone Stray does not allow weedkillers containing glyphosate – often sold as Round Up.
Take the flowers off dandelions before they turn to seed or you will be very unpopular with your neighbours. Of course you you could try eating them https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/apr/07/dandelions-foraging-salads-spring-seasonal-food-recipe