Top 10 Things to Do on Your Garden Plot in May

May at the cottage is the most "active" month. To make sure you know what to do first, we are telling you about the most important tasks in the garden in May together with landscape designer Irina Lukyanova.

Irina Lukyanova
Landscape Designer

"Style" the lawn

Set aside time for combing the lawn with a rake to prevent old weeds from interfering with young grass growth. Even if you cleared leaves and mowed the lawn to the desired height in autumn, don't skip this procedure. I recommend burning the dry combed grass and not using it for compost to avoid spreading pests and diseases. Where patches have formed, add fertile soil and sow new seeds.

Conduct aeration

When caring for the lawn in May, aeration is unavoidable — piercing the soil to a certain depth with special tools. This provides air access to plant roots and prevents water stagnation on the lawn and formation of fungal diseases. 

Aeration is performed using electric devices or manually — for example, with garden rakes. If the lawn in May reaches sufficient height for the first mowing (around 10–12 cm), it needs to be cut.

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Treat plants with insecticides

I recommend doing this twice: at the beginning of May during bud break and at the end of May. Also, thoroughly water the soil under plants with a solution.

Insecticide treatment is necessary to combat pests and their egg clutches that overwinter on tree bark: apple aphids, all types of aphids, fruit mites, apple moth (caterpillars), leaf rollers. This work must be completed before the first leaves appear.

Prune shrubs and trees

If you didn't manage to prune trees and shrubs in living hedges or for shaping plants in April, now is the last chance. First of all, remove large branches. Damaged, broken during winter, dry, brittle or diseased branches also need pruning and subsequent burning. 

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Don't forget to loosen the soil around plants

And apply spring complex mineral fertilizer.

Remove covers from heat-loving plants

Severe frosts are behind us, and in May it is necessary to remove covers from roses, rhododendrons, and Japanese maples so they don't rot under the sunlight.

I use an epin solution for spraying Japanese maples: with it, the plant better tolerates stress after removing the winter cover. Spray several times a month on the leaves. Also, don't forget to loosen the soil around plants and feed them with spring mineral fertilizer. 

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Monitor conifers

In May, it is necessary to spray thuja with fungicides against fungal diseases. Special attention should be paid to treatment inside the crown: usually, all pests and diseases accumulate there. Also, remember: do not leave fallen needles under plants.

Transplant shrubs

The most active growth and development of the root system occurs when soil temperature is between +5°C and +12°C: if you didn't manage to transplant them in autumn, now is the time. 

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Plant annual plants

By the end of May, you can plant annual plants — frost is unlikely. Anemones, poppies, astilbe seedlings, marguerites — start planting with these.

Water plants well

If there is an automatic irrigation system on the plot, in May it should be turned on and the entire watering system started. Otherwise, water plantings manually: ideally, this should be done immediately after applying mineral fertilizers. 

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