Sunday, May 16, 2010

Garden Tips for May

The sun was warm but the wind was chill. You know how it is with an April day. When the sun is out and the wind is still,
you're one month on in the middle of May. But if you so much as dare to speak, a cloud come over the sunlit arch, and wind comes off a frozen peak, and you're two months back in the middle of March.
~Robert Frost

May is a great month for planting Dahlias, Gladiolas, Begonias, Lilies and Cannas. Many perennials can be set out in May too. Plant daylilies, delphiniums, phlox, carnations, candytuft, basket of gold, primroses, coral bells or saxifraga this year.

POTTED TULIP CARE
If you've received potted tulips or bought some yourself you should care for them after the bloom fades. Remove the flower head at the top of the stem to stop seeds from forming, and keep watering it as usual until the stems die back by themselves. This helps them gather energy and prepare for next year. They should be in a sunny spot during this time. You can plant them when the foliage has browned, or just keep them in the pots and plants in the fall. Make sure the bulbs feel firm, and don't have soft spots. If they do, throw them.

READER'S TIP: DRY YOUR PEONIES
If anyone likes to dry flowers just cut some peonies and put a rubber band around the stems and turn upside down and hang to dry. They dry so nicely and look just like a rose. They look so nice in any dry flower arrangement. I try to dry just a couple of all my flower to see what dries the nicest. You would be surprised to see what all you really can dry. ~Linda

On OFL we have tips on growing Sunflowers, which can be sown in May.

~Brenda

1 comment:

  1. Lovely post, it is so nice to know when to plant things and your advise on the tulips is dead on from what I have read elsewhere.

    ReplyDelete

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