Glorious May gardens light up late spring
Gardens look glorious in May, whether they are impeccably kept or a bit of a jungle, thanks to the vibrant backdrop of fresh, luminous green that lights up late spring.
The new shoots of trees, shrubs and perennials only fizz with this incredible colour while they are still soft, which can make them particularly vulnerable to damage by frost, bad weather and pests this month.
Warm, sunny days make it easy to forget that frost is a real possibility until the end of May (and beyond in the Highlands). A sharp frost can even damage the new shoots of hardy plants, especially those of evergreens like Photinia and Aucuba. Tender plants, like summer bedding and dahlias, cannot cope with frost, so if you want to move or plant them outside, keep an eye on the forecast.
Have some fleece handy to protect prized plants if a late frost is forecast and keep potatoes earthed up to prevent their tender foliage being nipped. Sow tender vegetables, like French beans and courgettes, undercover in early May, so that they can grow on ready to plant out in early June.
Harden plants off by acclimatising them to outdoor conditions gradually before planting, or plant out under cloches or fleece to protect them while they establish. Get supports in for taller herbaceous perennials early this month too, so that new shoots can grow through them and will be held upright during wet and windy weather.
Temperatures can also dip dramatically in an unheated greenhouse or polytunnel, putting tender plants at risk on frosty nights. Try to wait until the nighttime temperature is hovering around 10C before moving tomato plants and other tender vegetables into the greenhouse, because they won’t grow at lower temperatures, but in cold springs you just have to go for it and cover them with fleece. Finally, watch out for pests, because damage now can set a plant back for the entire growing season. Slugs and snails can be a menace, but this year’s ban on the use of blue metaldehyde slug pellets means that indiscriminately poisoning them along with other wildlife is no longer an option.
Instead, reduce damage by limiting their favourite dark, shady hiding places (including piles of stones, rotting wood, pots or thick vegetation) and going out regularly on mild, damp nights to control numbers. Aphids also flock to new shoots, but rather than reaching for a spray that will also kill their natural insect predators, try squashing them or spraying them off plants with a jet from the hose, and watching as ladybirds, hoverflies and blue tits arrive to eat those that remain.
Have some fleece handy to protect prized plants if a late frost is forecast