Get Your Hands Dirty: Five Jobs to Do in the Garden in May

Spring is in full swing, and it’s time to roll up your sleeves and get to work in your garden. May is the perfect time to really get your hands dirty and start preparing for the summer growing season. Whether you’re brand new to gardening or a seasoned pro, there are plenty of jobs to do in the garden this month. Here are five essential tasks to add to your May gardening to-do list.

Plant Summer Bulbs – Now is the perfect time to plant summer-flowering bulbs like gladiolus, dahlias, and lilies. Make sure to choose a sunny spot in your garden and plant the bulbs at a depth of about twice their size. Cover the bulbs with soil and give them a good watering. In a few months, you’ll have a beautiful show of colour in your garden.

Clean Up Your Garden Beds – May is a great time to get rid of any dead plants, weeds, and debris from your garden beds. Trim back any dead growth from your perennials and shrubs, and get rid of any weeds that have popped up. This will help your garden beds look neat and tidy, and will also promote healthy growth in your plants.

Plant New Annuals – May is the perfect time to start planting new annuals in your garden. Choose bright, cheerful flowers like marigolds, petunias, and zinnias. Make sure to choose flowers that are appropriate for your garden’s soil and sunlight conditions, and plant them according to the instructions on their seed packets.

Prune Shrubs and Trees – May is a good time to prune your shrubs and trees to promote healthy growth. Take a look at your plants and prune out any dead, damaged, or diseased branches. Doing this will help your plants produce more blooms and fruit and will keep them looking neat and tidy.

Start a Compost Pile – May is a great time to start a compost pile in your garden. Collect any dead plant material, leaves, and kitchen scraps, and start layering them in a compost bin or pile. Over time, these materials will break down into rich, nutrient-dense compost that you can use to improve the health of your garden soil.

May is a busy month in the garden, but all of your hard work will pay off when you have a beautiful, healthy garden to enjoy throughout the summer. Whether you’re planting new flowers, pruning shrubs and trees, or starting a compost pile, there are plenty of tasks to keep you busy this month. So, put on your gardening gloves and get to work – there’s no better time to get your hands dirty!

The Chelsea Chop: A Method for Keeping Your Garden Blooming All Summer

Summer is here and if you’re an avid gardener like me, you want to keep your garden looking fresh and vibrant all season long. Thankfully, there’s a method called the “Chelsea Chop” that can help you achieve just that. The Chelsea Chop is a pruning technique that encourages plants to branch out and produce more blooms throughout the summer. In this blog post, we’ll delve into the origins and benefits of the Chelsea Chop and how to implement this technique in your own garden.

The Chelsea Chop got its name from the Chelsea Flower Show in London, where it was first introduced by the Royal Horticultural Society. The technique involves pruning the top one-third of certain herbaceous perennials at the end of May or beginning of June. When this is done, the plant responds by sending out new shoots from the base, creating a bushier and more compact growth habit. This means more flowers and a longer blooming period, providing you with beautiful colour throughout the summer.

Some of the plants that respond well to the Chelsea Chop include asters, rudbeckias, heleniums, phlox, and sedums. You’ll want to avoid doing the Chelsea Chop on plants that only bloom once a year as this can impact their overall health and flower production for the following season. However, for those plants that are repeat bloomers, the Chelsea Chop can do wonders for keeping your garden blooming endlessly.

The benefits of the Chelsea Chop don’t stop at just increasing flower production. This method can also help keep your garden looking healthy and tidy by preventing plants from becoming too leggy or floppy. By pruning them back, you encourage sturdier stems and a stronger overall structure. Furthermore, the Chelsea Chop can be a great way to control the height of certain plants, preventing them from becoming top-heavy and prone to breaking in windy conditions.

Now that you know what the Chelsea Chop is and why it’s beneficial, let’s walk through how to do it. As mentioned before, you’ll want to prune the top one-third of the plant at the end of May or beginning of June. Use clean, sharp shears to make a clean cut and avoid damaging the stem. You’ll want to avoid doing drastic pruning on plants that are already weak or struggling. Instead, it’s best to focus on healthy, thriving plants to get the best results.

The Chelsea Chop is a fantastic pruning technique for any gardener looking to keep their garden blooming all summer long. By encouraging repeat bloomers to branch out and produce more flowers, you’ll have a garden that’s full of life and colour throughout the season. Remember to only use the Chelsea Chop on plants that respond well to this technique and avoid doing any drastic cutting on plants that are already struggling. With a little bit of practice, the Chelsea Chop can become a valuable tool in your gardening arsenal. Happy pruning!

It’s Hedgehog Awareness Week!

The British Hedgehog Society Hedgehog Awareness Week runs from 30th – 6th May and this year it aims to raise the profile of Britain’s only spiny mammal which has found itself on the Red List for British Mammals in recognition of its vulnerable status.

So, the Charity is campaigning to get people to create their own Hedgehog Haven!  We can make Hedgehog’s lives so much easier with really very little effort.  All Week the Charity has been giving out tips on their social media accounts using #hedgehogweek. 

There are so many things that we can do to help Hedgehogs, here are a few:

  • Make sure hedgehogs can access your garden with a ‘Hedgehog Highway’ a 13 x 13cm square gap in the bottom of fences or walls should do it! Once created you can log these on the BIG Hedgehog Map at www.bighedgehogmap.org
  • Create a log pile that will offer shelter and natural food.
  • Build a Hedgehog Home.  Find some ideas here: www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/hedgehog-homes
  • Move piles of rubbish to a new site on the day you are burning it and check it carefully before setting light to it, lighting from only one side so that there is an escape route should you have missed anything.
  • Check areas carefully before mowing or strimming.
  • Ensure netting is kept at a height that allows hedgehogs to pass safely under it.
  • Check compost heaps carefully before digging the fork in.
  • Stop using pesticides and poisons.
  • Cover drains or deep holes.
  • Ensure there is an easy route out of ponds & pools.