May To Do List

Plant: ornamental & wildlife

• Annuals:  zinnia, cosmos, sunflower, celosia, penta, periwinkle, gomphrena, portulaca and other “ice” plant succulents, Mexican sunflower, salvia coccinea
• Perennials & vines:  (shade them for a week or so)
• Semi-tropicals like Pride of Barbados
• Tropical plants
• Succulents
• Crinum lilies, cannas, caladiums, ginger
• Ornamental (clumping) grasses like muhly and Mexican feather grass
• Clean up and replant containers—annuals, perennials, herbs, hibiscus, vegetables in larger containers
• Top new containers with light layer of mulch to conserve water; use decomposed granite, pea gravel or other grit for potted succulents

Plant: herbs

• Basil, catnip/catmint, comfrey, fennel, horseradish, oregano, thyme, rosemary, Mexican mint marigold, peppermint, lemongrass, lemon balm, lemon verbena, bay laurel
• Plant: food crops
• Cantaloupe, okra, Southern peas, sweet potato slips, pumpkin, summer & winter squash, watermelon
• Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Vegetable Planting Guides (Central Texas) http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/travis/home-landscape/edible-gardens/growing-vegetables/

Prune

• Spring flowering shrubs, vines, and roses that bloom only in spring
• Trees: DO NOT prune red oaks and live oaks unless damaged. Spray immediately with clear varnish.
• No need to apply pruning paint to other trees
• Dead head flowering plants
• Cut back fall blooming perennials like aster
• Prune spring bulbs only when foliage is brown
• Remove sucker shoots from tomato plants to get earlier, larger fruit
• Cut back spring bulbs that are brown

Move/Divide

• Succulents
• Spring blooming bulbs while you can still see them!

Fertilize

• Foliar feed flowers and vegetables with liquid seaweed
• Bougainvillea with high nitrogen
• Citrus with high nitrogen fertilizer like Citrus-tone. Fertilize every few weeks through growing season.

Insects

• Watch for aphids and spider mites. It’s easy to spray them off with a hard blast of water. Be sure to get the undersides of the leaves.
• Ladybugs and green lacewings will be chomping down those aphids, so watch for them and their larvae.
• Aphids and other insects can create sooty mold on plants, a fungus that develops from their secretions (honeydew). Wash off the culprits and the leaves. Remove damaged leaves to the trash (not the compost pile).
• Walk the garden in early morning to pick off stink bugs and largus bugs from tomatoes. Check under the leaves for eggs.
• Deploy grasshoppers while young. If you wait, you won’t be able to deal with them. Effective baits include Nolo Bait or Semaspore.  Both contain a protozoa called Nosema locustae which is impregnated in bran flakes sweetened with sugar. Apply by hand or with a rotary spreader, early in the morning, when grasshoppers are feeding.

Lawn

• Move the lawn mower setting up to high. As we head into summer, keep the roots cool by leaving the grass long. Don’t remove more than 1/3 of the top at a time. Leave clippings on the lawn to naturally fertilize.

Other tasks

• Collect seeds from spring blooming plants. Clean off the chaff and let dry indoors. Store in jars, envelopes, or paper bags (not plastic) to plant in November
• Mulch, but avoid touching the base of trees and roses
• WEED! Do not let weeds go to seed. Do not apply chemicals: pull them up or mow down before they set seed.
• Watch for powdery mildew. Apply a natural fungicide like Serenade if necessary. Generally, it goes away naturally. Avoid watering leaves at night.
• Deeply water new plants. Even if rain comes, check the soil to 3” deep to make sure their roots have water.  A brief shower doesn’t mean it penetrated to the roots.
• Keep a garden journal to note bloom times and insect habits.

Tips

• Prune herbs often to encourage new growth
• Walk the garden in early morning to pick off stink bugs and largus bugs from tomatoes. Look under the leaves to for their eggs.
• Water fruit and nut trees deeply to avoid fruit drop-off

Tips for all 12 months