Our latest e-newsletter...

Hope everyone is having a great spring so far! Here's our latest e-newsletter for some inspiration....



Early May Gardening Calender

What to do in the garden now



* Break off wilting tulip or daffodil heads but continue to feed and care for the plants until the foliage has died back naturally.

* Promptly remove spent flowers from any plant unless your intent is to harvest the seeds. It consumes plant energy to produce seeds, and in many species (especially annuals), removing the flowers will promote further blooms.

* Still too early to plant Geraniums, Tomatoes, Impatiens, Basil, and other tender plants outdoors. May 15th is the frost-free date for our area.

* Pinch azalea and rhododendron blossoms as they fade. Double-flowered azaleas need no pinching.

* Early flowering deciduous shrubs can be pruned back when they have finished blooming.

* Work lime in the soil around your hydrangeas to produce pink flowers or sulfur for blue.

* Since spring rains have been sparse, begin irrigating, especially plants growing in full sun.

* Growing lettuce under screening materials such as a shade cloth. This will slow bolting and extend harvests into hot weather.

* Apples, crab apples, and hawthorns susceptible to rust disease should have protective fungicidal sprays applied beginning when these trees bloom.

* Remove any sucker growths from fruit trees as soon as they appear.

* Slugs will hide during the daytime beneath a board placed over damp ground. Check each morning and destroy any slugs that have gathered on the underside of the board. Or, use Sluggo---an organic control, to prevent slug damage.

* Setting your mower for a higher cut during the spring months will help the grass to grow in fuller and help choke out weeds.

* The first flowers you'll see will be your weeds. Work to eliminate the weeds (roots and all), before they have a chance to go to seed, or you will be fighting them for years to come.



Have a gardening question? Email Jim Zanetti at jim.zanetti@mcardles.com






[ return to top ]

May 5, 2010

Early May Gardening Calender
What to do in the garden now

Vegetable Gardening
Small Spaces

Unwanted Guests in the Garden
Late Blight on Tomatoes

Aphids

New At McArdle's
Living Outdoors

Container Gardening
Container Annuals That Go The Distance


McArdle’s Florist & Garden Center
Celebrating Being Green In Greenwhich For 100 Years
48 Arch Street, Greenwich, CT 06830
(203) 661-5600 | www.mcardles.com