insideKENT Magazine Issue 38 - May 2015 | Page 125

OUTDOORLIVING YOUR GARDEN: may Summer's on its way As bulbs fade and herbaceous borders grow in leaps and bounds, it is now clear that summer is approaching. Sowing and planting out bedding can begin, depending on regional weather variations, and you can take softwood cuttings. It's also time to get back into the lawn-mowing regime, as the lawn will love the warmer temperatures this month brings. TOP 10 JOBS THIS MONTH Flowers Cutting back, pruning and dividing 1. Watch out for late frosts and protect tender plants 2. Earth up potatoes and promptly plant any still remaining 3. Plant out summer bedding at the end of the month (except in cold areas) 4. Collect rainwater and investigate ways to recycle water for irrigation 5. Regularly hoe off weeds 6. Open greenhouse vents and doors on warm days 7. Mow lawns weekly 8. Check for nesting birds before clipping hedges 9. Lift and divide overcrowded clumps of daffodils and other spring-flowering bulbs 10. Watch out for viburnum beetle and lily beetle grubs Sowing and planting Divide clumps of herbaceous perennials that you want to propagate. Bamboos and clumps of bulbs or rhizomes can be divided in the same way. Cutting back clumps of spring-flowering perennials such as pulmonaria and doronicum can encourage a fresh flush of foliage. Plant out cannas and dahlias when the danger of frost has passed. Tubs can be planted up with summer bedding in milder areas. In colder areas further north or at high altitudes, it is advised to wait until early June, or until all risk of frost has passed. If you want to grow your own spring bedding for next year, many common choices (including wallflowers, pansies, and daisies, bellis perennis) need to be sown between now and July in order to flower next spring, as they are biennials. Winter bedding plants can also be sown from now until July. Remove faded wallflowers and spring bedding from beds and containers, to make space for summer plantings. 125 Divide primula (primroses) after flowering, planting them in a nursery bed until they are ready for planting out again in the autumn, for a display the following spring. Divide hostas as they come into growth. Spreading and trailing plants such as the annual lobularia (sweet alyssum) and the perennials, alyssum and aubrieta, can become tatty and patchy. Trimming them back after flowering encourages fresh growth and new flowers.