In the Garden: First Week of May

May’s Garden Activities

A Guide: What and When

There is a lot to do in the garden. Soil and air temperatures are slow to warm this year. There is a lot to do. If you feel behind, do not worry. But, stay a bit ahead of the curve! The following information is presented in four categories: Direct Seed, Transplant, Indoor (greenhouse) Starts and Pests.

If you have questions that are outside of the scope of this email then save the date: May 12th. We will have a Drop-In Garden Clinic. 10:30 am until Noon.

Direct Seeding (in most area gardens): Beet, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, carrot, cabbage, cauliflower, chard, kale, lettuce, peas, potatoes, fava beans and garbanzos (not other beans), turnips (but not quite yet on rutabaga) and other greens/herbs (cilantro, dill, mustard, arugula, but not basil).

Transplant: Harden off and transplant out all plants in the brassica family (Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kale. If you do not have starts then do not worry (see above, you can still direct seed).

Seeding Indoors: It is a fine time to seed cucumber, all squash, melon, and gourd. These plants resent transplanting so one should not start them too early. And take great care transplanting out at the end of the month.

Others: Hang on to all of your warm season crops (tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers). Build their cell structure with gentle airflow or running your hand over the plants. Keep them in good light to avoid weak, leggy growth.

Pests/Disease: Aphids are hatching. Keep an eye on landscape and orchard plants that have proven to be susceptible in the past. Plums and currants come to mind. Least toxic treatments are spraying aphids off with a steady stream of water (this mostly kills the aphids, but do not use a stream that is strong enough to injure the plant).

Weeds. They are pests of the vegetative matter. Annual weeds are germinating, you can easily hoe or hand pull annual weeds now.

It is too early, and too cool this year, to consider treating for many pests. Grasshoppers, cherry fruit fly and codling moths are not at a treatable stage. But, prepare. Source ‘Nosema’ for grasshoppers and spinosad for codling moths and cherry fruit flies. Prepare for treatment, get your supplies.