It's May in the Garden! Here's Your List for Zone 7

I have neglected my blogging this year, but certainly not the gardens! We have been busy cleaning, plowing, and planting...with precious few minutes left over for posting. That ends today!

Here are the pictures I have snapped over the past couple of months of 2016:

Kitchen Garden — covered up for late freeze in April

Kitchen Garden — First of May (note the new gate to Fenced Row Garden!)

And here's what's on our 'To Do' List for May for our Zone 7 Gardens*:

Kitchen Garden:

• May 1^st is the beginning of the recommended planting time for bush lima beans (through July 1^st), okra (through May 31^st), and both sweet and hot peppers (through May 31^st ).  May 15^th marks the date to begin planting sweet potatoes (through June 15^th).

• Continue planting pole beans (through July 1^st), cantaloupe/muskmelons (through June 1^st), sweet corn (through June 1^st), cucumbers (through May 15^th), pumpkins (through June 15^th), summer and winter squash (through May 15^th), tomato plants (through July 15^th), and watermelons (through June 1^st). 

• When setting out tomato plants, set up stakes or cages so you won’t disturb the roots later.  Be sure to remove any suckers to encourage the plant’s energy be used for larger fruit rather than side shoots. (I always attempt to root the suckers; many times I'm lucky and get a freebie tomato!)

• When planting beans (pole and/or bush) and corn, make successive plantings every two weeks to ensure a longer harvest. Or, you could plant early and late season varieties at the same time. Be sure to thin corn to stand 8-12 inches apart when it reaches 4" in height. And give it a side-dressing of fertilizer when in reaches 12" in height...if you want to have corn that's "knee-high by the Fourth of July."

• Plant basil and dill directly in your garden this month after the nighttime temps are consistently above 50°. 

So where are we in the above list, you ask? 

(1) I've planted a bed of Fordhook lima beans at the south end of Row 1, with Kentucky Wonder pole beans along the fence on the north end, underplanted with (a new variety for me) Jade II bush beans. 

(2) Two varieties of cantaloupe were direct-seeded in Row 3, as were 6 (!) varieties of watermelons [Sugar Baby, Jubilee, Charleston Grey, Navajo Winter (new for me), Georgia Rattlesnake, and Sweet Icebox (another first)]. 

(3) Two varieties of cucumber were planted at the south end of Row 4, as were zucchini and yellow squash. The north end of 4 is still in garden peas and will be followed by pumpkins at a later date. 

(4) We reoriented the rows in the Corn Crib (the fenced-off area around the corn rows), and on April 15 I planted 3 kinds of sweet corn in the seven rows: 2 in Silver Queen (4 year-old seed...which ALL germinated!); 2 in Ambrosia; and 3 in Peaches 'n Cream. Since we have had warm days and nights along with copious amounts of rain in the last couple of weeks, all have germinated well and will need to be thinned...my upcoming May chore after the next rain (predicted for tonight and tomorrow).

(5) in addition to beans in the Row Garden, I have planted a couple of varieties in the center square in the Box Garden (raised beds): Scarlett Runner and Rattlesnake (runner). The second one was sent to me by mistake when I ordered the Georgia Rattlesnake watermelon seeds from Sow True Seeds (my fave Asheville, NC-based seed store!). No worries! Just gives me something new to try!

(6) Speaking of the Box Garden, the raised beds continue to host our cool-season crops: Box 1 has beets, spinach, and carrots; Box 2 has broccoli and red cabbage; Box 3 has Stonecrop cabbage along with a couple kinds of potatoes (you may recall I usually grow potatoes in bags in the area we call the Potato Patch...and we do have 12 bags with 4 varieties there again this year; but we really liked how easy it was to "dig" potatoes when we trialed them in Box 2 last Spring, so we doubled our plantings in 2016); and Box 4 has worlds of lettuce (pictured). Each Box (except the Center Square) has 10-12 onions planted in the end sections. Many of these will be succession-planted with beans (for nitrogen-fixing), but we also will trial planting our sweet potatoes in Box 1. 

(7) The Herb Garden (pictured) is looking great! I added the annuals (basil, dill, and parsley) to the returning  perennials (sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, chives, lemon balm, and several types of mint). 

(8) The asparagus bed started producing very early this year and has slowed considerably over the past couple of weeks. Will need to soon weed and replenish compost. 

(9) The tomatoes and peppers I seeded earlier indoors are almost ready for transplantation. I am hardening them off in the protection of one of the wagons, which I can cover with row covers in case of low temps...or bad squirrels.  (I have lost 3 tomato seedlings as well as 2 peppers to a squirrel attack, while they were on my potting bench. Grrrrr.)

Lettuce in Box 1

Herbs!

Orchard and Berry Patch:

• Fertilize blueberries, blackberries, and grapes this month.  Read more about it in the NC Cooperative Extension publication Grapes and Berries for the Garden.

So, where are we?

(1) We will fertilize with 10-10-10 around May 15, or as soon as the blueberries begin to ripen.

(2) Additionally, we have begun enjoying the strawberry harvest, and will keep the berry patch weeded and well-picked. 

(3) We will spray with Orchard Spray about the same time to keep our pest problems at bay.

Rose Garden (and perennials and annuals):

          • To prevent black spot on roses, continue a weekly fungicidal spray regimen, if you don't use the 6-week systemic variety.   The latest research says NOT to remove black spot infected leaves UNTIL you don't see anymore green...thereby giving your rose bush all the help it needs in continuing to produce chlorophyll.

           • Prepare beds for summer annuals such as petunias, marigolds, and zinnias; a location with 6 or more hours of sun each day is ideal.

            So, where are we?

(1) We will fertilize (for the second time) with Rose Tone around May 5, as our bushes are all in full-bloom now. 

(2) Additionally, we will continue to prune as needed to keep the bushes looking tidy. 

(3) We seeded along the fences and several beds, including our Pollinator Garden (located in the Orchard) with marigolds, zinnias, cosmos, and sunflowers. Some were purchased packets, but most were from seed we saved from previous plantings over the years...since we planted our first marigolds and zinnias in our gardens in O'Fallon, MO. 

'Gertrude Jekyll' rose

Flowers, Shrubs, and Trees in the Front and Back yard gardens:

• It’s time to prune and 

fertilize Spring-flowering shrubs such as azalea (pictured) and rhododendron after they have bloomed.

• 

Remove broadleaf weeds from all landscape planting areas. If left to grow, they will rob water and nutrients from your plants. Mulch both beds and paths for best control.

So, where are we?

(1) We will fertilize with 10-10-10 around May 15, or as soon as the Rhodies finish their show.

(2) We had our pine straw replenished in the front natural areas and we've begun the process of mulching pathways...including the Row Garden inside the newly fenced area.

Lawns and Grasses

• According to the Home Lawn Calendar for May from the Center for Turfgrass Environmental Research and Education at NC State, mow tall fescue lawns at 3 to 3 ½”, and at least once each week.  This article also encourages grasscycling, which is the practice of leaving grass clippings on the lawn.  “Grass clippings decompose quickly and can provide up to 25 percent of the lawn's fertilizer needs.”  We actually use the clippings from the Way Back (around the Orchard and the Berry Patch) to "feed" the compost piles.  Good as gold!

• Lawns need 1 to 1 ¼ inches of water per week.

Other             

• Take some time to enjoy the butterflies, honeybees, and hummingbirds!  Remember to use low toxicity pesticides to protect these beautiful and beneficial creatures.  And, even though Neem Oil is marketed as an Organic spray, it is still toxic to bees...so don't spray when in the morning when bees are most active.
• Move houseplants out-of-doors when the nighttime temperatures are consistently above 50 degrees.  
• After incorporating finished compost into your garden, begin a new compost pile. Or, make this the year that you start composting.  Learn everything you ever wanted to know about the subject from the NC Cooperative Extension publication:  Composting: A Guide to Managing Organic Yard Wastes.

Remember, May is Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Awareness Month.  Before you dash outside to your May gardening activities, put on a hat, sunglasses, and adequate sunscreen protection.

Happy hoeing!


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* This May To Do List is updated and revised from an article I had published on GoGreenTriad.com in 2011.